Excavation unearths remains of city water system

The site of the ancient Luoyang capital in today's Henan province has recently seen the discovery of over 80 meters of water channels dating back to the Wei (220-265) and Jin (265-420) dynasties. It indicates the maturity of techniques used to build water conservancy facilities and the capability of water resource utilization and environmental management of the time.

The excavation on the Qianqiu Gate site of the ancient palace started in 2021, and the researchers later found the large-scale underground water channels beneath the gate site's square.

So far, four water channels have been discovered, all stone culverts running side by side from southwest to northeast. The channels were confirmed to have been built together and follow a unified construction plan, says Guo Xiaotao with the Institute of Archaeology from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Such water conservancy facilities, with large-scale layouts and delicate designs, are the first to be spotted during the excavation work on the Luoyang ancient city.

The manhole covers above the channels also have square holes to facilitate rainwater collection. The ruins of the water channels are believed to have introduced water from outside sources into the palace city, before funneling the water into the lakes of the Xiyou Garden at the north of the imperial palace complex.

The facilities were likely part of a water diversion project to the gardens inside the ancient capital's palace that were later reused by Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), says Liu Tao with the institute.

The discovery further explores the royal garden layout of Luoyang at that time and serves as a historical reference for modern urban water resource utilization, Liu adds.

Luoyang city site has a history of over 1,500 years, and for about 600 years, it served as the capital city for many dynasties in ancient China.