Throughout the Palaeolithic and the Neolithic periods, humankind maintained close contact with nature and actively took advantage of the mineral materials in its environment such as rocks and clay. While the appearance of stone artifacts marks the very beginning of human history, the advantageous properties of fired clay were discovered much later.
Stone was used to make tools (axes and adzes etc.), ornaments, cult objects, items for hunting and defence, as well as for building houses later in prehistory. The people living during the Neolithic in the Balkans were quite aware of the qualities of various rocks and sought certain types of hard rocks such as amphibolite and serpentinite for making tools, softer rocks like marble and slate for jewellery and figurines, and rare multi-coloured rocks like jade and nephrite, green jasper and red radiolarite for jewellery and amulets.
Specific types of sedimentary rock like flint and chert were used for making the most common hand tools like blades, scrapers, and drills, as well as arrowheads.
Another raw material that has played, and still plays, a significant role in everyday life is clay. The most abundant objects found on prehistoric sites are often broken clay vessels and artifacts, which is due to the fact that malleable clay becomes hard and strong – although also more breakable – after exposure to extreme heat. The variety of shapes and decorations applied to the ceramic vessels are often used to distinguish various archaeological cultures.
The circulation of rare raw materials such as spondylus shells or obsidian (volcanic glass) are often indications for contacts on a closer (micro-regional) or more distant (supra-regional) scale.