Al-Ruj Plain

Al-Ruj Plain (Arabic: سهل الروج, romanized: Sahl ar-Ruj),[lower-alpha 1] also known as Ruj valley, is a natural depression with a total area of 804 square kilometres (310 sq mi), surrounded by the Harim Mountains in the Idlib Governorate, Syria. It is situated between al-Ghab Plain and Amouk Plain. The plain was covered by an ancient lake until it was drained out before 1955 by a canal to the Orontes River in order to be utilized for agricultural purposes.[1]

History

The plain had small to medium-sized settlements which concentrated on agriculture due to the abundance of water in the region, and were probably controlled from the outside, such as Ebla.[2] In addition, it had plenty of tells, such as Tell Ain El-Kerkh, and thirty-three sites which dated back from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B to Late antiquity.[3] Assyrian Emperor Shalmaneser III had marched through the region before the Battle of Qarqar in 853 BCE.[4]

Later on, the Crusaders launched foraging raids in the region led by Peter of Roaix,[5] and Raymond Pilet d'Alès, during the events of the First Crusade, according to the Gesta Francorum.[6] Following the Battle of Harran, the Crusaders retreated from most of the valley,[7] but they later regained their lost territories, probably after defeating Fakhr al-Mulk Radwan in the Battle of Artah.[8][9]

Excavations

The sites in the plain were initially excavated by Jacques-Claude Courtois in 1970s.[10] Afterwards, they were examined by Takuya Iwasaki representing the University of Tsukuba in the 1990s.[11]

Notes
  1. Ruj is derived from the French word rouge, to refer to the plain's red soil.[1]

References
  1. Khalil Saleh 2017, p. 2.
  2. Matthiae & Marchetti 2016, pp. 248–249.
  3. Makoto Arimura (2020). "The Neolithic Lithic Industry at Tell Ain El-Kerkh" (PDF). University of Tsukuba.
  4. Lawson Younger Jr. 2016, p. 469.
  5. Bell 2019, p. 92.
  6. Theotokis 2021, p. 120.
  7. Asbridge 2000, p. 55.
  8. Asbridge 2000, p. 59.
  9. Theotokis 2021, p. 138.
  10. Matthiae & Marchetti 2016, p. 248.
  11. Matthiae & Marchetti 2016, p. 249.

Sources

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