Seven main periods of soil formation can be distinguished in the floodplain of the Moskva (Moscow) River, with the oldest paleosols dated to the Allerød age. We analyzed paleosols buried under alluvial deposits, colluvial sediments, and archaeological deposits within the catchment area of the Moskva River. Paleopedological reconstructions were correlated with the results of the pedoanthracological and palynological analyses. Series of radiocarbon (14C) dates were obtained on humic acids and dispersed macro-charcoal from paleosols and archaeological features. Wide time frames of the floodplain paleosol formation were determined at a 95% probability as 14,600–12,600 cal BP for Soil 7; 9500–7000 cal BP for Soils 6 and 5; 6700–5500 cal BP for Soil 4; 5000–4400 cal BP for Soil 3b; 4100–2700 cal BP for Soil 3a; and 2000–700 cal BP for Soil 2. The dates were compared with the age of archaeological sites from the same areas. The comparison revealed a close correspondence between the ages of the soil charcoal and the timing of archaeological occupations. That allowed us to conclude that the fire occurrence on a regional level was associated mainly with the human occupation. The fire record is especially pronounced in floodplain paleosols, due to both the role of rivers as human migration corridors, and the integral accumulation of combustion products from the entire catchment area in these paleosols.

Charcoal was sampled in four soil profiles at the Mayumbe forest boundary (DRC). Five fire events were recorded and 44 charcoal types were identified. One stratified profile yielded charcoal assemblages around 530 cal yr BP and > 43.5 cal ka BP in age. The oldest assemblage precedes the period of recorded anthropogenic burning, illustrating occasional long-term absence of fire but also natural wildfire occurrences within tropical rainforest. No other charcoal assemblages older than 2500 cal yr BP were recorded, perhaps due to bioturbation and colluvial reworking. The recorded paleofires were possibly associated with short-lived climate anomalies. Progressively dry climatic conditions since ca. 4000 cal yr BP onward did not promote paleofire occurrence until increasing seasonality affected vegetation at the end of the third millennium BP, as illustrated by a fire occurring in mature rainforest that persisted until around 2050 cal yr BP. During a drought episode coinciding with the "Medieval Climate Anomaly", mature rainforest was locally replaced by woodland savanna. Charcoal remains from pioneer forest indicate that fire hampered forest regeneration after climatic drought episodes. The presence of pottery shards and oil-palm endocarps associated with two relatively recent paleofires suggests that the effects of climate variability were amplified by human activities.