Ancient history of Kolkheti Kolkheti National Park was once part of the tropical and partly subtropical zone of the
Tertiary period that stretched over the continent of
Eurasia. Around 2000 BC, the first Georgian state, Kolkheti, better known as "
Colchis", was created here and was the place in which the first Georgian coinage, "Kolkhuri Tetri", was minted. Colchis appears in the myth of
Jason and the Argonauts and his pursuit of the
Golden Fleece. establishing trading posts in the area at
Phasis,
Gyenos, and
Sukhumi in the 6th-5th centuries BC. These sites lay just outside the lands conquered by
Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. After the demise of the
Persian Empire, a significant part of Colchis became known locally as
Egrisi and was annexed to the recently created
Kingdom of Iberia (
Kartli) in c. 302 BC. This region retained a degree of independence until conquered in c. 101 BC by
Mithridates VI of Pontus. The region became inhabited by a number of related but distinct tribes whose settlements lay chiefly along the shore of the Black Sea. Numbered amongst these were the
Machelones,
Heniochi,
Zydretae,
Apsilae,
Lazi,
Chalybes,
Tabal,
Tibareni,
Mossynoeci,
Macrones,
Mushki and
Marres. During the rule of the
Roman Empire, the Romans established major fortresses along the sea coast, but they found it increasingly difficult to maintain order. The lowlands and coastal area of what forms the marine area of the park today were frequently raided by the fierce mountainous tribes, with the
Soani and
Heniochi being the most powerful of them. In 69 AD, the people of Pontus and Colchis under
Anicetus staged a major uprising against the Romans, who had grown increasingly weak during this time. By the 130s, the kingdoms of
Machelones,
Heniochi,
Egrisi,
Apsilia,
Abasgia, and
Sanigia had occupied the area from south to north.
Goths, dwelling in the
Crimea and looking for a new home, raided Colchis in 253, but they were repulsed with the help of the Roman garrison of
Pitsunda. By the 3rd-4th centuries, most of the local kingdoms and principalities had been subjugated by the
Lazic kings, and thereafter the country was generally referred to as
Lazica (
Egrisi). However, given that the surrounding wetlands contained much rich biogeographical and paleogeographical information of high importance to scientists and to Georgian national heritage, the area was granted
Ramsar status in 1996. Local and international NGOs petitioned against the oil terminal and
Green Alternative, a Georgian NGO, were particularly active in the protests but without initial success. In the end, the construction of the Kulevi Terminal was abandoned in late 2002, reportedly because of financial reasons, but the marine area of the Kolkheti National Park still clashes with land permitted to oil and gas companies for oil exploitation, conflicting with the official designated protected area. ==Hydrology==