Wet grinding of aluminum hydroxide in a tumbling mill was conducted to investigate the effect of abrasive powder worn from the ball media on the preparation of low temperature sinterable alpha-alumina powder. The abrasive powder worn from high purity alumina balls reduces the transformation temperature to alpha-alumina during the calcination process. The transformation temperature decreases, from about 1300 degrees C for the unground sample to about 1000 degrees C for the ground product, with increasing amounts of abrasive powder. Only 0.2 mass% of contaminant causes a reduction in temperature by about 200 degrees C in comparison with the unground one. The alpha-alumina powder calcined after the grinding is very line. Therefore, low temperature sintering of such alpha-alumina calcined powder is easily achieved, forming a dense sintered body. The alumina abrasive powder is considered to play a significant role as a seed effect in the formation of alpha-alumina.