Research was conducted to obtain information about texture, whitening phenomenon and provenance of jade wares excavated from ancient tombs of the Shang and Zhou periods at Hengling ridge. Routine mineralogical tests, infrared spectroscopy, X - ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscope and Raman spectroscopy were used on jade ware samples. Results suggested that quartzite, quartz, tremolite (nephrite) and greywacke were used. The soil at the Hengling ridge site has quite high acidity, and this is believed to be responsible for the white opaque appearance of the tremolite jade wares. The characteristics of inclusions and the uniform temperature in the quartzite and quartz wares from Hengling ridge showed that the materials were likely to be from pegmatite. These properties were different from the quartzite and quartz materials from Boluo and Taishan ( an area near the mouth of Zhujiang), hence they were considered exotic. This study can provide basic scientific infonnation regarding our ancestors' ability to discern and utilize various natural sources, in addition to infonnation on productivity level, the exchange of goods, trade routes etc. in the Shang and Zhou periods in the Zhujiang delta area.