page_title: Government of the Han dynasty
section_title: Superintendent of Waterways and Parks
hierarchical_section_title: Government of the Han dynasty / Central government / Metropolitan offices / Superintendent of Waterways and Parks
caption_attribution_description: English: A Chinese Western Han Dynasty (202 BC &#8211; 9 AD) pottery figurine of a dog with a harness.
context_page_description: The Han dynasty of ancient China was the second imperial dynasty of China, following the Qin dynasty. It was divided into the periods of Former Han and Later Han, briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty of Wang Mang. The capital of Western Han was Chang'an, and the capital of Eastern Han was Luoyang. The emperor headed the government, promulgating all written laws, serving as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and presiding as the chief executive official. He appointed all government officials who earned a salary of 600 bushels of grain or more with the help of advisors who reviewed each nominee. The empress dowager could either be the emperor's actual or symbolic mother, and was in practice more powerful than the emperor, as she could override his decisions. The emperor's executive powers could also be practiced by any official upon whom he bestowed the Staff of Authority. These powers included the right to execute criminals without the imperial court's permission.
  Near the beginning of the dynasty, semi-autonomous regional kings rivaled the emperor's authority.
context_section_description: The Superintendent of Waterways and Parks (Shuiheng duwei 水衡都尉) was also known as the Chief Commandant of Waterways and Parks, and was once a subordinate of the Minister Steward until 115 BC, when he, and other former subordinates of that ministry, became independent officers. His salary-rank was equivalent to 2000–dan. The Superintendent of Waterways and Parks managed a large imperial hunting park located outside Chang'an, including its palaces, rest stops, granaries, and cultivated patches of fruit and vegetable gardens, which, along with game meat, provided food for the emperor's household. He also collected taxes from commoners using the park's grounds and transmitted these funds to the Minister Steward, who managed the emperor's finances. One of the Superintendent's subordinates supervised convicted criminals in their care of the park's hunting dogs.
  In 115 BC the central government's mint was transferred from the Minister Steward's ministry to the park managed by the Superintendent of Waterways and Parks. In 113 BC the central government closed all commandery-level mints; private minting had previously been outlawed in 144 BC. The Superintendent's imperial mint in the park outside Chang'an had the sole right to issue coinage throughout the empire. However, Emperor Guangwu of Han (r. 25–57 AD) abolished the Superintendent of Waterways and Parks and revived his post annually during autumn to conduct a ritual sacrifice. The imperial mint became the responsibility of the Minister of Finance and the imperial park located outside Eastern-Han Luoyang was administered by a prefect.
caption: A Western-Han pottery dog with a harness for a leash; a subordinate of the Superintendent of Waterways and Parks cared for hunting dogs who assisted in the imperial hunts for game meat.
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