When the African and Eurasian tectonic plates clashed together millennia ago the enormous pressure that went into the formation of The Alps produced extremely hard crystalline basement rock.
     Similar to the way precious metals such as gold and silver are prized today, artifacts manufactured from hard rocks proved to be a trading commodity as far back as the Neolithic Era. There main use was in the manufacture of axeheads which, due to the nature of their usage, had to be durable and reliable. Quite rapidly these prized items became widely exchanged and traded, with examples having been found over 1000 kilometres away from their source of origin.
     Now, for the first time, a team from the Department of Prehistory at the University of Barcelona (Spain) has begun a study into these axeheads, in an attempt at gaining an understanding of why Alpine stone became such a sought after commodity.
     A researcher with the team, Selina Delgado-Raack, is quoted as saying "The reasons favouring the integration of specific rock types into these long-distance networks depended on a complex pattern of technological and functional criteria". A fellow colleague in the team, Roberto Risch, reinforced this argument "In the case of the Alpine axeheads, their exceptional exchange value was due to the increase in manufacturing costs, a result of the intense polishing of these stones as they passed from one community to another". This is a reference to the adaptability of these tools, due to their amazing durability.

Edited from EurekAlert! and PhysORG (14 Nov 2019)