Manhole covers of the “City Badge of Han River” series (color version).

Wuhan, capital city of Hubei Province, was promoted in an article posted by Creative Cities Network, a subnetwork communication platform of the UNESCO Cities of Design on May 2, 2022.

The article introduced the “City Badge of Han River” series of manhole covers designed in Wuhan, saying that small manhole covers can be turned into works of art, and show the cultural features of Wuhan and its city image.

The manhole covers are co-designed by Wuhan Water Group with teachers and students from Wuhan University, and produced by Hanshui Technology of Wuhan Water Group. The surface patterns of the manhole covers are divided into color version and copper version.

In February 2022, the manhole covers made their debut on the streets of Wuhan and were widely praised by citizens. They were recommended to UNESCO in April and were displayed on Creative Cities Network as a special city card for Wuhan on May 2.

At present, a batch of manhole covers of the “City Badge of Han River” series have been laid on the streets and roads in Wuhan, with more on the way.

Consisting of 180 cities around the world, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) has been dedicating to the promotion of creativity industry to sustainable urban development since its establishment in 2004. Wuhan officially joined the network in 2017, becoming China’s fourth “City of Design” along with Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing. (en.hubei.gov.cn by Ruan Xinqi)