Branch of Grand Canal Identified

Archaeologists in central Henan Province have identified an ancient canal site as part of the Grand Canal, the longest artificial waterway in the world.

The discovery will be added to the joint application of sites along the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal for World Heritage status.

Experts have studied the waterway of the Suoxu River in the city of Zhengzhou, capital of Henan Province, confirming it as part of the Tongji Canal, the western extension of the Grand Canal.

Relics of ancient dikes and paths on the riverbank have also provided proof to the experts' theory that the canal was initially built in the Warring States (475 - 221 BC) and later connected to the network of the Grand Canal.

The main waterway of the Grand Canal starts in Beijing and passes through several provinces in north and east China to reach the resource-rich Hangzhou. The oldest sections of the 1,776-km canal were built 2,500 years ago, and they were linked together in the Sui Dynasty (581 - 618). Part of the canal is still in use today.