Petros Themelis is the man who, for 38 years, devoted himself with passion to showcasing the place he loved more than anything else in his life, bringing to light an entire civilization, through many years of excavation and restoration work at the archaeological site of ancient Messene. He was a man who approached monuments and culture in a deeply holistic way, integrating them into our lives and daily routines. He is the one who, alongside his excavation and restoration work, carried out significant social work, providing work experience, expertise, goals, and a vision to many people of Messinia; he was the one who, even in difficult times, did not hesitate to support his work and his employees out of his own pocket. He is the man who showed us, through his way of thinking and his way of life, that beauty lies in simplicity and in the love for what you do. He is the one who generously shared his knowledge and experience with countless students and colleagues who were fortunate enough to learn from him, the one who transformed excavation into an enjoyable and highly educational experience. He is the man who took us on a journey to an era long forgotten for millennia, the one who taught us all, through his own example, that above all else, “the journey is what counts.”

The legacy of his work lies in the people he shaped. That legacy is embodied in all the people he shaped and inspired—the people he trusted and who trusted him, whom he loved and who loved him—his friends, colleagues—it is the Society for Messinian Archaeological Studies (EMAS), which he himself founded—and which Petros Themelis and ancient Messene must ensure lives on forever, just as he himself would have wished.