A Study on the Establishment of Mahan and its Basic Culture

The purpose of this article is to examine the establishment of Mahan and its basic culture. The Mahan establishment period is a period that includes the process prior to its complete formulation. I wanted to search for the period between the 5th century BC and the 2nd century BC, where Attached-rim pottery culture, Korean-style bronze dagger culture, and Songguk-ri type culture coexisted. The 5th century BC was the inflow period of the Attached-rim pottery culture and was understood as a period of adaptation and transformation for indigenization. The 4th~early 2nd century BC was understood as a period of indigenization while maintaining friendly relations with local powers. In particular, the 4th century BC is representative of heteromorphic(異形) bronze ware such as dagger sheath-shaped bronze ware and rough-patterned bronze mirrors, while the 3rd century BC is representative of fine-patterned bronze mirrors and bronze bells. In this process of indigenization, the Attached-rim pottery culture and the Songguk-ri type culture formed a friendly and convergent complex relationship. In addition, the Korean- style bronze ware culture was established and developed. And various burial cultures were formed based on relationships with local groups and external cultures. Beliefs and rituals also became indigenous. Since the reign of King Jun in the early 2nd century BC, the Mahan’s iron ware culture has become widespread. This shows the development of several or many Mahan societies distributed regionally. We can assume a territorial war, internal alliance network between various Mahans, and a check on the King Jun’s power group. It is believed that this background led to the extinction of King Jun’s power.