Iskenderun

Iskenderun is a city in Hatay, now a province of modern-day Turkey, along the south coast of the Mediterranean, near the border with Syria. In ancient times, the city of Alexandretta (built by and named for Alexander the Great) was located on the same site, near the pass to Syria. The city was part of the Ottoman Empire, until its collapse after World War I, then was part of the French-controlled Syria before being part of the short-lived Republic of Hatay, which joined Turkey in 1939.

During the Crusades, three Knights of the First Crusade discovered the Holy Grail and stayed with it in the Temple of the Sun. When two of the knights left for Europe, they left behind two markers that led to the Grail's location, listing Alexandretta as the starting point.

Indiana Jones visited Iskenderun at least once in his adventures.

In 1938, after discovering the second marker in Venice, Jones sent Marcus Brody ahead to Iskenderun to meet up with Sallah and start the search for the Holy Grail while Jones went with Elsa Schneider to rescue Henry Jones, Sr.. Brody and Sallah met up at the train station, but Brody was kidnapped by Nazi agents, who took the map. Days later, Sallah met up with Jones and his father in the town, and drove them out to the desert, where they spied Walter Donovan's convoy and attempted a rescue.

Behind the Scenes
The real town of Iskenderun is a historical continuation of Alexandretta (Iskenderun is Arabic for Alexandretta) - not simply a newer city built on the same site as the ancient city. While in Last Crusade, the townspeople speak Arabic, the real Iskenderun at that time would have had more Turkish speakers than Arabic speakers.

Locations within Iskenderun

 * Train station
 * Marketplace
 * Canyon of the Crescent Moon (outside town)

Appearances

 * Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade