The Amuq Valley

This is the northern part of the Orontes valley, also known as the Plain of Antioch, Though it now constitutes the Turkish province of Hatay, archaeologically, this region very much belongs to the central Syrian Amorite and Aramaean traditions, with material from the tell sites showing close parallels with those in Syria itself. 

The archaeological record has revealed fluctuating influences and imports from the Canaanite coastal regions to the south-west, the southern coast of Anatolia to the north-west, the Aegean far to the west and Mesopotamia to the south-east. 

The artifacts associated with this extensive trade illustrate the wealthy, cosmopolitan and sophisticated character of this northern Armorite and Aramaean area.