Mid-nineteenth century Chinese maps controlled water and directed labour
A sequence of twelve maps from the mid-nineteenth century reveal that they were accurate enough for planning and executing middle-sized water control projects for the department of Dengchuan in southwest China according to University of Hertfordshire researchers and published in Water History.The woodblock maps show the Miju River and the irrigation system that lay at the heart of the Dengchuan’s farming economy. They include administrative details related to the compulsory mobilisation of the local labour for the annual clearance of mud – making them very unusual among Chinese maps
