Sokhumi State University
Associate Professor
Doctor of History
Tbilisi, Georgia
kaxaberp73@gmail.com
From Trapezus to Pityus: Representation of Rome’s Regional Defensive Network and Historiographical Discourse
Abstract
In AD 63, Roman garrisons were stationed at the coastal centers of Colchis—Apsaros, Phasis, and Dioscurias—laying the foundations of the Roman frontier-defense system on the eastern Black Sea coast. Roman troops were subsequently stationed at Pityus as well. The defensive line of Colchis formed part of the broader frontier-defense system of the Roman East.
There is still no scholarly consensus regarding the nature and scale of the Roman frontier-defense system in the eastern Black Sea region. Although modern historiography provides a relatively precise definition of the term limes as a highly organized frontier-defense complex comprising fortifications, continuous defensive lines, walls, ditches, earthworks, and developed communication infrastructure, some scholars continue to refer to the Roman system of fortresses on the eastern Black Sea coast as the “Pontic Limes.” Another view considers this frontier perimeter to have constituted a sector of the Cappadocian Limes.
The paper analyzes written and archaeological sources, as well as interpretations proposed in modern historiography concerning the Roman frontier system of Colchis. It argues that, because of the region’s specific geographical and natural conditions, there was no need to construct a classical limes along the Colchian frontier and, consequently, no such system existed there. From this perspective, the term “Pontic Limes” is considered scientifically unjustified.
Particular attention is also devoted to the problem of identifying the sites regarded as components of the Roman frontier system on the eastern Black Sea coast. According to some scholars, this system included Apsaros, Phasis, Zigane, Sebastopolis, Pityus, Trachea, Mamai-Kala, and Bata. However, the presence of permanent Roman garrisons at several of these sites is not documented. Some authors extend the system even further by incorporating a number of locations in the northwestern Caucasus, although most such identifications lack a sufficiently reliable evidentiary basis.
In reality, the Roman frontier-defense system of the eastern Black Sea coast constituted a network of fortified points extending from Trapezus to Pityus and included Trapezus, Hyssus, Rhizaeum, Athenae, Apsaros, Petra, Phasis, Sebastopolis, and Pityus. The Roman fortification network never extended beyond this area.
Accordingly, the Roman military-defense system in the eastern Black Sea region was more limited in scale than is suggested in some modern studies.
This research was supported by the Shota Rustaveli National Science Foundation of Georgia (SRNSFG) [grant number GSDP-24-1289].