Machang

Refers to one of the three major phases of the Gansu culture, dating from ca. 2000 to ca. 1800 BCE. It is named after a site east of Ledu in eastern Qinghai province that was excavated in 1921 to 1923 by the Swedish archaeologist Johan Gunnar Andersson. Machang-phase pottery was made of either red clay or sand-tempered red and grey clay; the most common forms are jars, bowls, and juglike vessels. Typical decorative motifs include four large circles, ringlets, spirals, anthropomorphic patterns, and woven and checked patterns. Much Machang pottery bears painted symbols; 139 different symbols have been identified so far. Some large jars have tops in the shapes of human heads; one notable vessel has a human figure with both male and female sexual organs and breasts. These figures were probably associated with shamanistic rituals. The best-preserved remains of Machang houses have been excavated in Majiawan in Yongjing.