Earliest systematic coal exploitation for fuel extended to ~3600 B.P.

Qiu, Menghan; Liu, Ruiliang; Li, Xingyuan; Du, Linyao; Ruan, Qiurong; Pollard, A. Mark; Zhang, Shanjia; Xiao, Yuan; Li, Gang; Li, Gaojun; Zhang, Jiao; Luo, Jiyuan; Chen, Shengqian; Yang, Xiaoyan; Wang, Yongqiang; Han, Jianye; Chen, Fahu; Dong, Guanghui

doi:10.1126/sciadv.adh0549

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Bayesian chronological modeling has been widely applied to restrict the age boundaries of clusters of radiocarbon dates in the research of archaeological chronology [53,[60][61][62][63]. The methods of this study were based on previous protocols, and the radiocarbon dates that were distinct from the rest of the data group were judged as outliers and were eliminated before modeling [60][61][62].…”

Section: Bayesian Chronological Modelingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiocarbon-Refined Archaeological Chronology and the History of Human Activity in the Southern Tarim Basin

Ma,

Hu,

Qiu

2024

Land

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Famous for Taklimakan, the world’s second largest sandy desert, the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang has long attracted researchers from various fields to investigate its paleoenvironment and antiquity. The southern part of this basin is an ideal region in which to investigate the interactions between humans and the environment due to its fragile habitat and prosperous ancient civilizations. However, the lack of direct radiocarbon dating data has caused the chronologies of some of the archaeological sites to be debatable, which hinders our ability to reconstruct historical patterns of human activity and further understand, in a coherent manner, their interaction with the environment. This study reports 25 new radiocarbon dates acquired from ten undated archaeological sites in the southern Taklimakan Desert in order to refine their chronologies. Based on this, a radiocarbon dataset was established to reveal the trajectory of human activity with the support of Bayesian chronological modeling. The results indicate a two-millennium continuous flourishing of the local society since the beginning of the first millennium BCE, as well as a peak of human activity during the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). The distinct trajectory of human activity in the southern Tarim Basin revealed by this study provides a solid foundation for further assessments of human–environment interaction in the Tarim Basin and along the Silk Road.

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Section: Bayesian Chronological Modelingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Radiocarbon-Refined Archaeological Chronology and the History of Human Activity in the Southern Tarim Basin

Ma,

Hu,

Qiu

2024

Land

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“…Recent archaeological studies indicated that northern Xinjiang of northwest China acted as key passageways for the dispersal of modern humans during the late Paleolithic (Li et al, 2020) and trans-Eurasian exchange during the late Neolithic and Bronze Age (Zhou et al, 2020;Qiu et al, 2023). Liu et al explore the environmental background for prehistoric human occupations in the area based on the application of optically stimulated luminescence dating and analysis of pollen and multiple paleoclimate proxies from a loess-paleosol sequence in the Ili Valley of northwest Xinjiang.…”

Section: Editorial On the Research Topic Human-environmental Interact...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Editorial: Human-Environmental Interactions in Prehistoric Periods – Volume II

Dong,

Lee,

Ren

2023

Front. Earth Sci.

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“…Generally, the Holocene has been characterized by a relatively warm and humid period, which is referred to as the Holocene Climate Optimum (HCO). During this period, the humidity/precipitation increased, and the climate was relatively stable, thus providing the basis for the rise and development of ancient cultures and civilizations [18][19][20][21]. Therefore, clarifying the onset and potential spatial differences in the HCO is essential for understanding the role of climate in the succession of human cultures and civilizations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Time-Transgressive Onset of Holocene Climate Optimum in Arid Central Asia and Its Association with Cultural Exchanges

Wang,

Liu,

Xie

et al. 2024

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Arid central Asia (ACA) is dominated by mid-latitude westerlies and characterized by a climate optimum (a relatively humid climate that has supported the development of human culture) in clear contrast with the climate of monsoonal Asia during the Holocene. Significantly, whether the onset of the Holocene Climate Optimum (HCO) had an impact on cultural exchanges along the ancient Silk Road remains unknown. In this study, we compared the onset of the HCO in different parts of the vast ACA region by referring to a variety of previously established paleo-moisture/precipitation records. Intriguingly, we found significant differences in the onset of the HCO between the western and eastern parts of ACA. The onset of the HCO in the western part of ACA (i.e., to the west of the Tianshan Mountains) mainly occurred at ~8 ka BP (1 ka = 1000 cal yr BP). In contrast, the onset of the HCO occurred at ~6 ka in northern Xinjiang and even as late as ~5 ka in southern Xinjiang; this is a delay of 2–3 thousand years compared with the western part of ACA. These results likely indicate that the onset of the HCO occurred in a time-transgressive manner in ACA, namely, ‘early in the west but late in the east’. On the other hand, we found that the onset of the HCO in the western part of ACA may have resulted in the inception of wheat planting and the development of agricultural civilization and that the onset of the HCO in northern Xinjiang may have prompted the southward migration of Afanasievo culture after ~5 ka. Additionally, the initiation of the HCO in southern Xinjiang could provide an environmental basis for the spread and planting of wheat and millet in this area after ~4.5 ka. We speculate that the spatial differences in the onset of the HCO in ACA are mainly related to temporal changes in the intensity and position of the mid-latitude westerly jet. Although the increase in insolation and reduction in the global ice volume would have led to an increase in the water vapor feeding the western part of ACA around 8 ka, the climate in the eastern part of ACA (namely, the Xinjiang region) could have only become humid after 6 ka when the westerlies were intensified and became positioned in the south. Moreover, the delayed HCO in southern Xinjiang probably benefited from the stronger westerly winds that appeared around 5 ka, which could have overcome the influence of the tall topography of the Tianshan Mountains. Therefore, in addition to external forcing (i.e., insolation), the ocean–atmospheric teleconnection, the regional topography, and their connection to the climate system are important in determining the spatial differences in the time-transgressive onset of the HCO in ACA. Our findings contribute to understanding the spatio-temporal characteristics of the hydroclimate in regions with complex eco-environmental systems and a diverse history of human activity.

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Earliest systematic coal exploitation for fuel extended to ~3600 B.P.

Cited by 6 publications

References 68 publications

Radiocarbon-Refined Archaeological Chronology and the History of Human Activity in the Southern Tarim Basin

Radiocarbon-Refined Archaeological Chronology and the History of Human Activity in the Southern Tarim Basin

Editorial: Human-Environmental Interactions in Prehistoric Periods – Volume II

Time-Transgressive Onset of Holocene Climate Optimum in Arid Central Asia and Its Association with Cultural Exchanges

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