This book is the fruit of Evi Olympitouâs final, prolonged scientific endeavour. All of us who loved Evi took part in the lengthy preparation for this study, and we knew her tireless research spirit, her frequent trips to unearth material, her hours-long interviews with informants, her endless hours of working in libraries and archives, and her all-nighters in front of the computer. We knew her passion to discover, to document and to understand every aspect of the subject she was researching; we knew her deep respect and love for the people she studied, her constant attentiveness to the text, and her wish that it be perfectly written and understandable for her readers.
Although Evi thought the text needed further processing, following her sudden death the question spontaneously arose as to whether this work could be published. Our response was positive and effortless because, as we realized while reading Eviâs text, the writing had almost reached its final stage, in spite of the fact that some sections were not yet fully completed. While this may be the case, this study constitutes an important contribution to ethnography and history writing, in part because brings to light previously unknown documentary material. It goes without saying however, that this version of Eviâs book is not the one she had envisioned, given that she did not have time to finish it, and shape it into its final form.
During the publishing process, it was necessary to proceed with modifications, which were made by Eviâs partner, Kostas Efthimiou, who had observed the writing process and had a clear picture of the book; Eviâs friends Sophia Laiou, Dimitris Dimitropoulos, Lina Venturas and Katerina Dede were also involved. Any changes made were largely concerned with omissions and repetitions and, in a very few cases, the text was restructured based on Eviâs own outline. In all cases, an effort was made to preserve the style and content of the book completely unaltered. It is also worth noting that the textâs extensive documentation required no further additions or editing.
All references to the Municipal Archive of Kalymnos follow the system of classification established by the author and a team of her students (the catalogue of the Archive was submitted to the Municipality of Kalymnos). When completing the preparations for publishing the manuscript, we were informed that a new system of classification had been introduced into the archives through a local initiative, which may change the numbering of some folders. It is our hope that, with the publication of this study, which makes a significant contribution to the history of the Kalymnian sponge fishery, the Municipality of Kalymnos will commission a table of equivalents for the old filing system in the archiveâs new numbering system.
This publication owes greatly to the contribution of Vassilis Panagiotopoulos and Triantafyllos Sklavenitis, who attentively read the text; of Vallia Rapti â Eviâs former student at the Ionian University who stepped up to proofread the text and create the index; as well as the contributions of Konstantina Simonetatou, who took great care with the layout of the text. We also extend our gratitude to the Director of the Institute of Historical Research, Professor Taxiarchis Kolias, who agreed to include this book in the publications of Institute of Historical Research (IHR) of the National Hellenic Research Foundation (NHRF). Evi had worked closely with the IHR/NHRF for several years, either on contract or as a volunteer in its research programs.
This book is the product of Eviâs rare and remarkable scientific ethos, her training and the consistent quality of her research. Eviâs selflessness, together with her compassionate character, and her unflagging will to share and to be generous with everyone, defined her as someone who served science and loved life. Evi was passionate about everything she believed in, and she connected with the people around her with such a generous soul that she left her mark on her scientific and professional communities, and of course, to an even greater extent, on all the people who loved her.
The Publishing Team