Abstract
There has been Japanese traditional townscape since 17th century in Gion-Shirakawa Area, Kyoto. This study attempts to find a new concept of water-front plannning in urban area to describe the history of Shirakawa River and Lake Biwa Canal from 17th to 20th century in this area.
The network of Shirakawa-River has played an major part in the creation and development of Gion-Shirakawa water-front. The Lake Biwa Canal linked to the river has still controlled a flood and created the stable water-front.
A hybrid planning concept of natural river and artificial canal has been realized to presence a proper townscape of water-front.
