Archaeology Professor Dimitrios Pandermalis, who headed the Acropolis Museum since its opening in 2009, has died at 82, the Culture Ministry and the Museum announced on Wednesday.

“It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to a rare scientist, an inspiring teacher, a valuable colleague, a good friend,” Culture Minister Lina Mendoni, said in a statement.

“His great work, his life’s vision, was the Acropolis Museum, which he served from the first moment, with all his strength. He was the soul of the Museum, when it was still only on paper … We owe it to him that Greece has one of the greatest and most beloved museums in the world, a model museum of cultural management, which honors our culture and our country,” she added.

The career of Dimitrios Pandermalis is full of top achievements in the science of archaeology. He was a pioneer, directing the excavations at Dion, where he developed an innovative archaeological and natural park. He brought new, modern ideas, as President of the Department of History and Archaeology and Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

This article was previously published at ekathimerini.gr.