The "Travellers and History" library of Panagiotis Laskaridis

Content

Number of items: 8.800

The library of the President of the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation, one of the most significant in terms of rarity, is also among the most comprehensive collections of travel and historical literature related to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Greek world. It includes over 7,000 books, acquired gradually over time by him, including incunabula (books from the beginning of printing up to the end of the 15th century) and early printed books. The collection primarily consists of travel and historical books. It also includes significant literary and religious works, as well as books of naval interest.
 
From part of this rich material, the Foundation has created digital tools:
 
Travelogues: Travellers’ views,
TravelTrails, in collaboration with the Gennadius Library, and
TravellersMap.

 

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Biography

Panagiotis (Panos) Laskaridis (1947) is a shipowner, Rear Admiral Emeritus of the Hellenic Navy, and President of the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation. He studied Mechanical Engineering at TU Braunschweig in Germany and completed postgraduate studies in Naval Architecture in London. He is active in the commercial shipping sector as the president of Laskaridis Shipping and is involved in various other business activities. For his philanthropic contributions and donations to the Hellenic Navy, he has been honored with significant distinctions from the Hellenic Republic and holds the title of Rear Admiral Emeritus of the Hellenic Navy. In 2007, he established the Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation, of which he has been President ever since, together with his wife Marilena Laskaridis, née Coombes, who served as Vice President of the Foundation until her untimely death in 2015.