Archaeologist and emeritus professor of prehistoric archaeology at the University of Athens, Georgios S. Korres, died on Monday aged 85.

Korres was born in 1940 and his family originated from Naxos island. He was the son of Stylianos Korres, professor of ancient Greek philology and rector of the University of Athens. He studied archaeology at the same university and at the University of Bonn on scholarships at both institutions.

After completing his studies he started working at the University of Athens in 1966, becoming a full professor of prehistoric archaeology in 1982, a position he held until 2007. He was corresponding member of the German Archaeological Institute and the Academy of Gothenburg and a full member of the Leibniz Academy in Berlin.

Korres carried out a lot of excavations, mainly in Messinia in southern Greece, and was head of excavations at Pylos. He had been honored with medals by the Ankershagen and Neubukow Museums, the Berlin Academy of Sciences, and the Winckelmann-Gesellschaft Museum. He had also been decorated by the government of West Germany in 1992, and by several other entities for the excavation and promotion of the antiquities of Messinia and Trifyllia, all in SW Peloponnese. His work includes original research and several articles published in Greek and international journals, while he published several books and contributed to collected works and international conferences.

Tribute by minister

Learning of his death, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said, "It is with deep sadness that I learned of the loss of Georgios S. Korres, an outstanding prehistoric archaeologist, both in academic teaching and in excavation research and the promotion of cultural heritage.

"With robust studies in Greece and Germany, Georgios S. Korres taught for decades at the University of Athens School of Philosophy, serving the object of prehistoric archaeology both in the classroom and by overseeing many doctoral theses. He was associated with significant excavations in Messinia, to which he devoted himself for over half a century, combining theory and practice in his long career. Along with his archaelogical work itself, Georgios S. Korres also studied the history of archaeological research in modern Greece, highlighting its development and bringing to light its unknown aspects. His research on the work and personality of Heinrich Schliemann has become a reference point.

"Georgios S. Korres was approachable and loved by his colleagues, always available to his students for advice, guidance, and support. To those of us who were lucky enough to get to know him and collaborate with him, his loss leaves us with sadness but gratitude as well for his multifaceted contribution. Georgios S. Korres was above all a very good person. To his children, friends, and students, I convey my most sincere condolences."