George Potamianos, one of the last great Greek cruise entrepreneurs, died in Portugal on Monday.

The founder and owner of Portugal’s Classic International Cruises came from a family whose roots in shipping stretch back to the 1850s, when Anastassios Potamianos founded Epirotiki Lines.

Although Potamianos started his shipping career with Epirotiki, the family business, his debut in shipowning was in 1969 when he established Potamianos Ionian Lines, using the small Danish passengership Hans Broge (built 1939).