Nikos Tsouchlos (1930-2002) – Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology (Η.Ι.Μ.Α.)

Founder of the Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology (H.I.M.A.), Nikos N. Tsouchlos was a pioneer of underwater archaeological research in Greece. His passion for nautical archaeological research, his integrity of character and his overall approach to life made him a role model and source of inspiration for all the young scientists who worked alongside him.

At the very end of the 1960s, he became closely associated with the American underwater researcher and scholar of ancient shipbuilding, Peter Throckmorton. This acquaintance played a decisive role in shaping his path.

The two collaborated in 1970 on the first systematic underwater archaeological excavation carried out in Greece, at the Byzantine shipwreck at Pelagonnisi in the Northern Sporades.
In consultation with Peter Throckmorton and the archaeologists Charalambos Kritzas and Georgios Papathanassopoulos, he founded in 1973 the Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology, the first scientific body in Greece devoted exclusively to the practice and organization of underwater archaeological research.

Συνέχεια

He was born in 1930 in Athens and studied Medicine in Geneva, Switzerland. Although he worked for a time as a shipping broker and expert, and was professionally involved for many years in photography and cinema, his entire life was essentially dedicated to the activities of the Institute and to the development of Underwater Archaeology in Greece. He served as General Secretary of the Institute during its first five years of operation (1973–1978), as President for 15 consecutive years (1985–2000), and as General Director from 2000 until his death.

He was responsible for the technical organization and photography of all of H.I.M.A.’s underwater surveys from its founding, most notably those at the Early Helladic shipwreck at Dokos, the Cypriot shipwreck at Cape Iria in the Argolid, and the Late Classical shipwreck at Antidragonera, Kythera. In 1988, together with archaeologist Yannis Vichos, he founded the scientific journal ENALIA. His contribution was also highly significant in organizing the final exhibition of the cargo from the Cape Iria shipwreck at the Spetses Museum in September 1998, as well as other special exhibitions of the Cultural Society “Panorama,” of which he was an active member for many years. He also served as President of the Organizing Committee of the International Meeting on the Cape Iria Shipwreck, convened at Spetses on 19 September 1998.

His views and proposals on the course and future of Underwater Archaeology in Greece, as well as on related subjects, were published in a series of articles and notes.