Engineer, educator and inventor · 1799–1875
Petrache Poenaru
Poenaru is remembered for combining a useful writing invention with a wider commitment to education.
A life behind the work
Poenaru’s life linked technical study with the building of Romanian education. Born in Benești, he studied in Craiova and at Saint Sava in Bucharest, then continued his training in Vienna and Paris. During the 1821 uprising he served as Tudor Vladimirescu’s secretary. In Paris in 1827, he patented a portable pen that carried its own ink supply, a precursor to the fountain pen. His wider work included education and the study of engineering abroad. He became a member of the Romanian Academy in 1870.