Camel Circle

Camel Circle

Camel Circle

Camel Circle is located about 10 kilometers north of the 15th Company of the 51st Regiment. Time period: Tang to Song dynasties.

The site is a roughly square-shaped structure, measuring 60 meters in both length and width, with an area of 3,600 square meters. According to locals, camel caravans used to camp here in earlier years, hence the name “Camel Circle.” As for the age of the ruins, it is said to be very early — even they are not sure. Nowadays, only sections of broken walls remain around the site, about 3 meters high and 1 meter thick. Some pottery fragments have been found within and near the site, including red pottery, black pottery, gray pottery, and sandy pottery. These pottery characteristics are similar to those found in the desert near Qiongtimu. However, judging from the current situation, the structural features, and location of the ruins — it lies east of other ruins such as Qiongtimu and about 20 kilometers west of the Tang King City, all in a straight line. Standing on the remaining walls and looking around, although the site is surrounded by red willow mounds and saline-alkali Gobi Desert, and about 500 meters to the east is a yardang landform, it does not affect the judgment of its basic structural form. The surrounding terrain is flat, and some areas appear to have been farmland, suggesting that this site is more likely to have been a small town. There are no traces of buildings inside the city, but a looting pit has been found in the southeast corner of the city. About 10 meters southeast of the city, there is also a dirt mound where several looting pits have been dug. From the cross-sections of these pits, what’s exposed seems to be cultural layers. The preservation status of the site is poor, with serious damage caused by looting. The few remaining broken walls have also collapsed due to natural and human factors.

Extending from this site all the way to the area east of Qiongtimu, a large number of pottery fragments can be found everywhere. Locals refer to the vast desert area from the 4th Company to Keqing in the northern part of the 51st Regiment as “Majiangleke,” meaning a place where “treasures” are buried. Whenever a strong wind passes or after rain, locals often go to the desert in small groups to search for and pick up these “treasures,” rarely returning empty-handed. They kneel on the desert ground, carefully searching even for the tiniest bit of debris, no bigger than a grain of rice, which they still consider a “treasure.” The survey team collected some pottery fragment samples from inside and outside the site, mainly including handles, rims, and bases.