The Long Journey of Curt Kosswig

THE Aşiyan Cemetery lies on a slope overlooking the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey. It is a peaceful green oasis in a bustling metropolis of some 15 million people. The graves are silent records of the people who lived, died, and found their final resting place there. The grave markers have only names and dates, and one can only guess about the lives and accomplishments of those buried there. In one quiet corner is a small, inconspicuous marker with a distinctly un-Turkish name: Curt Kosswig, 1903–1982. Next to it is a matching stone: Leonore Kosswig, 1904–1973. There is nothing to indicate who they were, what they did, or what impact they had on the world. For Curt Kosswig, this includes scientist, geneticist, zoologist, professor, explorer … and Honorary Foreign Member, American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. How a man who lived and died in Germany and spent most of his life...