Shorapani Fortress

The reason for Shorapani Fortress' inclusion in the list of top sights is not its current architecture, location or general condition, but rather its special historical and cultural significance.

According to several historians, the fortress is mentioned in the myth of the Argonauts, and it was from Shorapani Fortress that Medea and Jason stole the Golden Fleece many centuries ago.

Historical overview

According to the Georgian chronicler Leonti Mroveli, the fortress of Shorapani was built in the 3rd century BC by King Parnavaz. It was also mentioned by the Greek historian Strabon in the 1st century BC. He writes that the fortress was as big as a real city.

The fortress was of great military and economic importance. Shorapani was an important trading town in the former kingdom of Colchis, from where small ships could reach the Black Sea. The navigable waters also ended at Shorapani, and the only other route to the east was by land.

In the 6th century, during the battles between Byzantium and the Sassanid Empire, important battles took place at the fortress of Shorapani. These battles are described in detail by the Greek historians Procopius of Caesarea and Agathias.

Shorapani was also an important strategic point in the later Middle Ages. In 1730, the Ottomans fought a long battle for the fortress and finally captured it.

The last battle for the fortress took place in 1770, when the West Georgian King Solomon I liberated it from the Ottomans.

The fortress was badly damaged in this battle and has never been rebuilt since.

Location and architecture of Shorapani Fortress

The fortress of Shorapani covers an area of about 6000 m² and is situated above the confluence of the Dsirula and Kvirila rivers, in Imereti region, 100 metres above sea level. 

The fortress had several defence towers and two entrances, one from the north and one from the west. At the western entrance there was a bridge over the Kvirila River, the foundations of which can still be seen on the right bank. 

The fortress also had a well-developed water supply system with ceramic pipes and a secret tunnel about 60 metres long, which is still preserved.

Nowadays, only ruins remain of the fortress, but it is still possible to make out two different stages of construction. The lower part of the wall, made of river stones and limestone, dates from the 4th century. The upper part of the wall, built mainly of rough stone blocks, dates from the 6th century. Below the wall is another layer of walls from the pre-Christian period.

During the last archaeological excavations in 1983, numerous artefacts, also from the pre-Christian period, were found on the site of the fortress. Among them were objects from abroad, especially from Greece, Byzantium and Persia. 

Conclusion

Many historical facts, numerous archaeological finds, as well as the remains of a small harbour on the river Kvirila, which could be reached by boat directly from the Black Sea, provide historians with sufficient evidence to identify the ancient city fortress of Shorapani with the setting of the Argonaut Saga, which was recounted by the Greek poet and scholar Apollonios of Rhodes in the 3rd century BC.