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Onoguris, renamed as Stephanopolis in the Byzantine period, was a town in
Lazica The Kingdom of Lazica (; ; ), sometimes called Lazian Empire, was a state in the territory of west Georgia in the Roman era, Georgia in the Roman period, from about the 1st century BC. Created as a result of the collapse of the kingdom of Colc ...
(in present-day western
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
, possibly located at modern village Khuntsi) recorded by Byzantine historian
Agathias Agathias Scholasticus (; Martindale, Jones & Morris (1992), p. 23–25582/594) was a Greek poet and the principal historian of part of the reign of the Roman emperor Justinian I between 552 and 558. Biography Agathias was a native of Myrina ( ...
in his narration of the
Lazic War The Lazic War, also known as the Colchidian War or in Georgian historiography as the Great War of Egrisi, was fought between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanian Empire for control of the ancient Georgia (country), Georgian region of Lazica. The ...
between the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...
and the
Sasanian Empire The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...
. Its exact location is still under study.


History

Agathias derives the ancient name ' from a branch of the Hunnic Onoguri, who had been defeated in this place by the local Colchians and thus the town was named after them. According to Agathias, there was a church in the town dedicated to St Stephen, after whom the city was renamed. The Sasanian commander
Mihr-Mihroe Mihr-Mihroe (died 555), in Middle Persian either ''Mihr-Mihrōē'' Encyclopaedia Iranica, edited by Ehsan Yar-Shater, Routledge & Kegan Paul Volume 6, Parts 1-3, page 281a or ''Mihrmāh-rōy''; in Byzantine sources Mermeroes (), was a 6th-century ...
had fortified this town during his unsuccessful Siege of Archaeopolis. The Byzantines unsuccessfully besieged the fort in 554-555.


Identification

Kaukhchishvili (1963) links the name "Onoguris" with that of the Unagira Mountain and locate the town on halfway between Tsikhegoji-Archaeopolis in the west and
Kutaisi Kutaisi ( ; ka, ქუთაისი ) is a city in the Imereti region of the Georgia (country), Republic of Georgia. One of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, it is the List o ...
in the east. He also identifies the town with the fortress Ukimerion (also ''Uthimereos''). During the Nokalakevi expedition in the 1980s, archaeological excavations were undertaken at the Abedati Fortress ( ka, აბედათის ციხესიმაგრე),
Martvili Municipality Martvili ( ka, მარტვილის მუნიციპალიტეტი) is a district of Georgia (country), Georgia, in the region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti. Its main town is Martvili. Martvili Municipality is located in the north- ...
, and later research papers linked it with Onoguris. However, Pailodze (2003) and Lomitashvili (2003) have separately criticized this identification. Lekvinadzehas as well as Braund & Sinclair (2000) identified the town with modern Sepieti village, based on a 6th- or 7th-century Greek inscription addressing Saint Stephen in a basilica there. Pailodze (2003) reported unexcavated remains on the hill at Khuntsi, and suggested them to be possible remains of Onoguris. There is also a river nearby, the Nogela River (
Tskhenistsqali The Tskhenistsqali ( ka, ცხენისწყალი, ''Cxenisċqali'' , also: ''Tskhenistskali'') is a river in northern Georgia (country), Georgia. Its source is in the main range of the Caucasus Mountains, in the easternmost part of the ...
). In 2015, a small team from the Anglo-Georgian Expedition to Nokalakevi undertook an excavation of the site which they called Khuntsistsikhe ("the fortress of Khuntsi") which strengthen the identification, though they say more studies are needed to reach a conclusion.


References

{{Sasanian castles Lazic War Former cities in Georgia (country) Ancient history of Georgia (country) Lazica Lost ancient cities and towns Sasanian cities Sasanian castles Castles in Georgia (country)