Phasis (town)

Phasis was an ancient port town on the eastern shore of the Black Sea in the region historically known as Colchis, corresponding to an area near the mouth of the Rioni River in what is now western Georgia. It is known from classical sources as an important trading and maritime center in antiquity.

The site functioned as a regional harbor and commercial hub connecting Black Sea trade routes with inland Colchis and the Caucasus. Archaeological evidence and historical accounts identify it as a focal point for exchanges of goods and culture across the Black Sea region.

Classical accounts and archaeological work indicate Greek colonists and later successive powers used and contested the site from the first millennium BC through the Roman and Byzantine periods. Over time the town’s fortunes rose and fell with shifts in trade routes, river courses, and political control.

The remains associated with Phasis lie near the modern port city of Poti in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti, on the Colchis plain by the Rioni River and the eastern Black Sea coast.

• Position: Located on the coastal plain near the mouth of the Rioni (Phasis) River and associated with the modern port city of Poti and surrounding wetlands.