Ozurgeti

Ozurgeti lies among the hills of Guria in western Georgia, between the Bzhuzhi and Natanebi rivers. Founded in the late Middle Ages, it appears by name in the Georgian chronicles in 1578. It soon became a center of the principality of Guria and a residence of its rulers, the Gurieli. Trade also gave the town importance; a hoard of silver coins found beneath it bears witness to the money that circulated here. The hills and rivers around Ozurgeti place it between the Black Sea lowlands and the mountains inland.