Payas River

The Payas River, in southern Anatolia near today's Turkey—Syria border, is thought during recent modern times to be the famous Pinarus river of antiquity, where Alexander the Great defeated Darius III of Persia in the First Battle of Issus, and the likely site of the second and third battles of the same name down through time into the middle ages. This case is made by historians N.G.L. Hammond and A.M. Devine based on details in eye-witness accounts of the First battle of Issus balanced against an examination of the riverine terrain on the narrow coastal strip, which may not have drastically changed since antiquity. Earlier thought had the Pinarus as today's Deli Tchai river, a similar and not-distant stream, with surroundings which do not match up as well with certain source descriptions.

Whilst historically important, the stream itself is not much more than an average brook a few meters across, running westerly from the steep mountains and foothills to the east.