Vani & The Search for Jason and the Argonauts

The picturesque Georgian countryside near Vani. Photo by Samosir Books 

The Raven Brothers travelled deep into the heartland of Georgia’s ancient kingdom of Colchis to explore the ruins of Vani.

By The Raven Brothers 

The ancient city of Vani in the spiritual heartland of the kingdom of Colchis, is in a region of Georgia shrouded by myth and legend. It is thought to be Jason and the Argonauts' final destination on their quest for the Golden Fleece. During the classical period, the mythological story of Jason first appeared in various literary works in Greece and Rome. Jason, a prince of Thessaly, is challenged by his uncle Pelias to sail to the land of Colchis on the Black Sea's eastern shores in the Greek epic poem 'Argonautica' by Apollonius Rhodius. His task was to find the Golden Fleece, a symbol of authority and kingship. Jason, according to legend, had a special ship called the Argo built to transport him and 49 Greek rowers known as the Argonauts to Greece. The Argo eventually arrived in Poti, Georgia, and sailed up the Phasis (Rioni) River, after overcoming numerous hazards. It was in his capital, which experts believe could be Kutaisi or Vani, where King Aeëtes welcomed the brave men. Rather sportingly, Aeëtes agreed to give up the fleece, but there was a catch. For Jason to own the fleece, he had to fight a battle with a never-sleeping dragon. To win, Jason had to sew its teeth to the fleece; teeth that could become soldiers when planted in the ground. Jason accepted the challenge, but in a twist, he secretly promised to marry Aeëtes' daughter if she agreed to help him. Medea was skilled with magic and potions, and she gave Jason a charm that allowed him to survive Aeetes' tests and steal the fleece from the dragon guarding it. 

At a deserted archaeological site, I notice a man marching towards us. Out of breath, he asks where we are going. Chris replies, saying that we are on a quest to discover the Vani ruins. The man's stern look changes into a beaming smile. He introduces himself as Zurab, an archaeology professor at Tbilisi University. He previously worked for the British petroleum company BP Pipelines as an archaeological and environmental advisor.

He offers to show us around and takes us to a recently excavated site. He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose, still slightly out of breath, and describes the recent discovery of the ruins of a Roman wall with a moat. They have discovered several objects so far, including terracotta pots and amphora. We take in the sight of the mud-covered stone blocks, amazed that we are among the few people who have seen a wall that has been hidden beneath the ground for over a thousand years.

Zurab invites us to meet the director of the archaeological site. He informs us that the first excavations here at Vani began in 1890, after locals reported gold ornaments being washed down the hill following heavy rain. They had since discovered a city that flourished from the 8th century BC (an incredible 2,700 years ago), and was one of the main centers of ancient Colchis. He believes that in the story this could have been King Aeetes' city, the ultimate destination for Jason's search for the Golden Fleece. 

We arrive at an old wooden house, with an intricately carved fascia and a porch. Chris inquires about the age of the property, to which Zurab replies that it was built around the turn of the century. The university purchased the house and much of the land many years ago in order to preserve the valuable history that had been discovered in this area. We are led inside and introduced to the Archaeology Director. He is a vivacious Georgian man in his early sixties, dressed in a checked shirt and a green camouflage body warmer. He has the appearance of a military commander and is smoking a large cigar. The director graciously invites us into the workshop, where they are assembling pottery fragments with miniature bulldog clips and ceramic glue. It's an incredible honor to be able to witness archaeology in action.

Chris is curious about the gold panning with sheep's wool, and its relevance to the story of Jason and the Argonauts. Zurab smiles and confirms that this is almost certainly the source of the myth's inspiration. When he was a university student, he took part in a field expedition in the Svaneti region of the country's north. He met an elderly man with a gold tooth during his stay. When Zurab inquired about the location of the gold, the man revealed that he had discovered a large gold nugget in the Inguri River. Geologists believe that villagers once used sheepskin to extract gold from the area's mountain streams. The fleece was used to line the sandy streambeds, trapping any gold dust that accumulated. This method is similar to panning used elsewhere in the world, and it would have resulted in sheepskins imprinted with gold flakes, possibly giving rise to legends of a "Golden Fleece." Historic artifacts discovered in Svaneti villages, including a bronze sculpture of a bird with a ram's head, lend belief to the idea that the kingdom was once the source of the myth.

Leaving the archaeologists to carry on with their work, Zurab drives us to a nearby open-air museum. A woman in a white cotton shirt greets us at the door. Marine, the director's wife, started working on the Vani excavations in 1968 as a young student volunteer. She is extremely knowledgeable about the ruined city and informs us in perfect English that the site here at Vani was first established in 1947 and that excavations by the University of Tbilisi began in 1950.

Walking around the grounds, Marine tells us that Vani means "the place of rest", and they have discovered opulent burials dating from the eighth to first centuries BC. The archaeological research team believes Vani evolved into a temple-city primarily dedicated to the goddess Levcoteia. We are standing around a stone altar, where they discovered many graves and believe its existence was linked to the death cult. Marine points out sturdy mud brick walls built near the end of this time period. The fire-damaged adobe bricks indicate that the structure that once stood here was destroyed in the first century BC.

According to historical records, Pompey the Great, the military and political leader of the late Roman Republic, conquered Vani from Artoces, the king of Kartli. Pompieus was on the hunt for Mithridates the Great (King of Pontus and Armenia Minor at the time), who had fled to the kingdom of Colchis. Marine casts a sidelong glance at both of us, implying that Pompieus may have traveled as far as Mtskheta in search of Artoces and Mithridates.

A security guard watches over us as we enter a temporary storage facility where the majority of the artifacts are kept under lock and key. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to get up close and personal with ancient Greek columns and ceramics with blue and green glazes, pottery work, and an adobe brick from the altar that had been preserved by fire. She explains that the battle at Vani in the first century BC aided their understanding of the site, because burning preserves certain materials, such as wood, better than it would have decomposed naturally. Marine approaches a large cow's head temple carving. She admits almost sheepishly that the truly valuable items are currently on display at Tbilisi's Museum of Archaeology, where her daughter works. 

On the upper floor of the museum, there is a fantastic bronze vessel depicting Greek gods, fine bronze casts, and copies of gold adornments with animal designs. They also had an original pair of pendants from an ornamental crown with incredibly fine bird decorations on display for a while. Chris asks Marine what items she has personally discovered, and she confesses to having found many wonderful pieces. She is hesitant to claim ownership of specific items because she believes archaeologists work as a team.

We return outside and Marine comes to a halt in front of a cluster of stone ruins, and enthusiastically explains that this was the city's main entrance. She points to a ledge in the smooth stone doorway where a statue once stood. They believe the statue was female due to the inscription on the stone translates to goddess. Marine shrugs at the concept that this spiritual site bears all the hallmarks of the Dionysus cult. Dionysus was the Greek god of the grape harvest, winemaking, and wine, as well as ritual madness and ecstasy. Generations of Kartli have passed through these city gates, and the polished stone step in the doorway has worn down in the middle. In front of it was a wooden and iron-clad defense gate. During an attack in 5th century BC, the rope supports would have been severed and the defense gate slammed shut. She demonstrates the vertical grooves in the pillars through which the gate would have slid. Marine expertly paints a mental picture of what could have happened here in the seconds preceding the destruction of this ancient city. During an invasion, people inside would have prayed for their lives at a shrine inside the gates. The grain discovered in these vessels had been burned, implying that the gate had been destroyed by fire and the attackers had forced their way through. Marine's absolute passion for this magical site overlooking the beautiful Georgian countryside inspires us, and we thank her for taking the time to share it with us. We exchange contact information and promise to do everything we can to spread the word about Vani's fascinating ongoing work.