Vani archeological site

The Vani city-site that almost entirely covers chronologically the first millennium BC represented the religious-cultic centre of Colchis – land of the Golden Fleece – beginning from the 8th-7th through the 1st century B.C. The archeological site is spread over a hill known as “Akhvlediani Hill” and is divided into three terraces. On the first stage (8th -7th centuries B.C.), Vani must have been a cultic-ritual centre for the settlements situated in its vicinity due to its commanding position over the surrounding area (“Land of Vani”). During the second stage (6th -4th centuries B.C.), ancient Vani turns into one of the political and administrative centres of the kingdom of Colchis, as attested by the discoveries of luxurious graves of the local elite. On the third stage (the second half of the 4th century-beginning of the 3rd  century B.C.) stone architecture makes its appearance for the first time. The fourth stage (the second half of the 3rd –mid-1st  century B.C.) is the period of extensive construction activities when Vani acquires the function of the temple city. The city was destroyed twice as a result of foreign invasions during the 1st century B.C. 

According to the standing opinion, Vani should be interpreted as a temple city, possibly to be identified with the sanctuary of Leucothea (White goddess) mentioned by Strabo (Geography, XI, 2, 17). The temple city mentioned by Strabo had been sacked two times in the middle of the 1st century B.C. by Pharnaces, king of Bosphorus and later by Mithridates, king of Pergamon. Except for the fact that ancient Vani was twice destroyed, there is one more archaeological evidence: an inscription discovered on a wall of the Vani gate complex (2nd  -1st centuries B.C.) that reads as “I pray thee, ruler-goddess” backs the suggestion that temple-city was actually connected with the worship of a female deity. Today, a visit to the remains of an ancient temple city from the 3rd -1st centuries BC unveils why the international scientific community has recognized Vani as the "Georgian Pompeii".

The Vani archaeological museum of the Georgian National Museum brings new prospects for an appreciation of Vani as the land of mythical Golden Fleece and religious center and ascertaining its position in the classical world. 

The main goal for the first distant naval expedition, undertaken by the Argonauts led by Jason, was the Golden Fleece belonging to Colchian king Aeëtes. The mightiest Greek heroes could obtain the Golden fleece solely with the aid of the Colchian princess – Medea, renown for her skills in sorcery. This is the storyline for the cycle of myths about the Argonauts (which is one out of three main Greek mythological cycles), i. e. a constituent part of a system laying foundation for the Classical culture and later, to the European civilization in the epoch of Renaissance. Exhibits of Vani museum discovered in the land of Colchis referred to as “rich in gold” by Greek written sources along with the cities - Sardis, Mycenae, and Babylon - erase boundaries between myth and reality. 

Otar Lordkipanidze Vani Archeological Museum of Georgian National Museum is one of the first site museums in the region of the Caucasus. The museum, named after its founder, was established in 1985 and fully renovated in 2020. The exhibited archeological materials cover the period of time from the 8th century B.C. to the 1st century B.C. and comprise artifacts discovered both on the territory of the city-site and its vicinities. They stand out for the variety of locally manufactured and imported pottery, specimens of Colchian goldwork, local and foreign coins, stone and marble architectural details, and altars. Numerous fragments of bronze statues and temple inventory stand out as a rare example of a Hellenistic bronze collection preserved so thoroughly. Part of the Vani archeological materials are now on display at the GNM Simon Janashia Museum of Georgia in Tbilisi.

As a prominent attraction in the region, the Vani Museum conducts a variety of events, including public lectures, concerts, film screenings, diverse shows, and festivals, which can be conducted both indoors and outdoors. 

The museum serves the archaeological community and heritage professionals as a scientific gathering place, an essential teaching facility, and a research laboratory. The Shelby White and Leon Levy Library-Mediathèque is available for research within the museum.