The Shkodra Archaeological Project (PASH) took place in northern Albania, particularly in the Shkodra region. PASH focused on analyzing human settlements and social behaviors, from prehistory to modern times. This thesis focuses on the study of grinding stones collected by this project during excavation and survey. This study incorporates macroscopic, petrographic and chemical analyses to source these grinding stones and compares them with sourced samples collected in South Albania to answer questions about raw material selection and social interactions. It was found that, based on their chemical and petrographic properties, grinding stones collected by PASH are different from those collected in southern Albania. Evidence obtained by chemical and petrographic analysis strongly suggests that samples from PASH are likely made of local material. Hence, it was concluded that inhabitants of the Shkodra region were self-sufficient in grinding stone production and did not need to import them from elsewhere.

Pottery, as an artifact, is often used as evidence of exchange patterns among groups during prehistory. This research incorporates paradigmatic classification and petrography to answer questions related to provenience, production mode, and exchange patterns of handmade prehistoric pottery from Gajtan, Zagorë, Kodër Boks, Tumuli 088 and 099 in Shkodër, in Northern Albania. Pottery samples analyzed in this study were collected from test excavations by the Shkodra Archaeological Project (PASH). The results yielded evidence that the area has sufficient local clay sources and other easily accessible natural resources to produce pottery in a domestic mode. Gajtan and Zagorë appeared as two distinct entities, but the former settlement seems to have played a dominant role as a production and distribution center within the region. Results from this study indicate that pots appear to have played an important socio-economic role in northern Albania, across time and space.