Mandalay’s hydraulic system –a historiographical approach to the regional spatial structure

Abstract

No city could survive without stable supply of water, which is true for many of ancient to modern cities. In this study, geographical and historiographical studies led to the visualization of a hydraulic system of Mandalay on a map. The hydraulic system established in this research consisted of intaking (a weir); transportation (canal); and storage and distribution (tank/reservoir/moat). As a result, the hydraulic system was found to have been formed and transformed over the twelfth century, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and to date, but the basic characteristics of the hydraulic system remained unchanged–i.e. 1) gravitational flow without pumping/harnessing, 2) multiple purposes for water supply, irrigation and others; and 3) dual supply sources for Palace for the security of supply. These findings about formation and transition of the hydraulic system of Mandalay explains how the Burmese Royal Cities were planned and implemented from the hydraulic aspect.