Fires history and the human impact during the mid-late Holocene in the mid-eastern Silk Roads

The history of Holocene fire evolution and its influencing factors are hot scientific issues. The middle (Xinjiang) and eastern (Xi'an-Dunhuang) parts of the Silk Road were affected by different climatic systems, and there are obvious differences in the mode and intensity of human activities in the middle and late Holocene. Research on the history of paleo-fires in this region and their relationship with climate change and human activities has received extensive attention. Based on the analysis of black carbon in the sediments of two alpine lakes, and combining the available paleo-climatic results, archaeological and historical literature, we reconstructed the paleo-fire history of the middle and late Holocene in the  area. We revealed the relationship between paleo-fires and the changes in climate, vegetation, and human activities in different regions, and explored the differences in the patterns of paleo-fires in the study area in terms of temporal and spatial variations, and their possible driving mechanisms. The above work will help to understand the pattern and mechanism of ancient fires in the mid-eastern Silk Road on a centennial and millennial scale, which is of great theoretical value and practical significance for future fire prevention and control measures in the context of climate change, and also provides a valuable case study for understanding the impact of human activities on the environment.