Colchis

Colchis was a historical polity and region of Antiquity, located on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia. Founded around 1700 BCE and dissolved in 164 BCE, it was known in classical antiquity and Greco-Roman geography as an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi. Described as "the earliest Georgian formation," Colchis is believed to have been inhabited by early Zan-speaking tribes, ancestral to modern Laz and Mingrelian peoples. In Greek mythology, it was the destination of the Argonauts and home to Medea and the Golden Fleece, and was known for its rich resources like gold, iron, timber, and honey.