In China - A Trip on the Imperial Canal

Take a cruise through imperial China on the world's longest man-made waterway, the Grand Canal.

Take a cruise through late-Qing-dynasty China on the world's longest man-made waterway, the Grand Canal, with this Pathé travelogue. Sights along the way include a pair of ingenious machines for irrigating the paddy fields (one powered by a water buffalo); the arduous loading of a ship with salt, basket by basket; and quayside scenes at Shanghai's busy harbour.

The production company, Pathé, was one of several European and American companies working in China during the late Qing dynasty (before 1912). Their films capture the lost life and landscape of this ancient country.