Amne Machin, Mountain summit in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai, China

Amne Machin is the highest peak of the mountain range of the same name, an eastern extension of the Kunlun Mountains in southeastern Qinghai. The summit, in Maqên County of Golog Prefecture, reaches 6,282 metres. Joseph Rock described three main peaks: a southern pyramid called Chenrezig, a central lower pyramid, and a northern round dome, Dradullunshog, which is the highest.

Known in classical Chinese texts as Mount Jishi, the massif was long a Golok pilgrimage site, with up to 10,000 people circling it each year before the Communist takeover. In 1960 a Chinese expedition reported the first ascent, but in 1980 it emerged they had climbed Amne Machin II (6,268 m), not the main summit. On 22 May 1981 Giichiro Watanabe, Yoshio Yamamoto and Katsumi Miyake of a Japanese expedition reached the true summit; Galen Rowell's American team and an Austro-German group followed within weeks.

The mountain is sacred in Tibetan Buddhism as the home of Machen Pomra, the protective deity of the Amdo region, and locals still honor this presence through rituals and pilgrimages.

Accessing the area requires special permits and group visas. The extreme altitude demands careful acclimatization, so visitors should prepare physically before attempting any climbs or extended stays.

The range forces one of the Yellow River's great bends: the river runs several hundred kilometres east and southeast along its southwestern side, then turns almost 180 degrees and flows 200 to 300 km northwest past its northeastern side. The peak area lies within the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve.