fl. c. 219 B.C.

Chinese engineer who designed the Miracle Canal, one of China's first notable inland waterways. Completed in 219 B.C., the canal was one of many projects undertaken during the Ch'in Dynasty (221-207 B.C.), which was most noted for the building of the Great Wall. Though it was only 20 miles (32 km) long, by connecting the Yangtze and Kan rivers, the canal made it possible for ships to travel inland from Canton in the south to the latitude of modern-day Beijing in the north.