Gheorghe I. Cantacuzino

Gheorghe I. Cantacuzino (born 1937 in Bucharest) is a Romanian historian and archeologist.

Gheorghe I. Cantacuzino studied at the Sfântul Sava High School, graduating in 1954. Thereafter he attended the courses of the Faculty of History at the University of Bucharest, specializing in history of the antiquity and archeology. In 1977 he got his doctor’s degree at the Institute of Archeology of Bucharest.

Professional activity

Gheorghe Cantacuzino started his professional activity as museologist in Tulcea, where he worked from 1959 to 1961. He then transferred to the "Prof. Dr. Nicolae Minovici" Folk Art Museum where he also held a position of museologist from 1961 to 1963.

In 1963 he got a position of archeologist at the Direction of Historical Monuments (renamed “Direction of the National Cultural Heritage” in 1974) where he worked till 1978. He then held the position of chief museologist at the National Museum of Romanian History till 1990.

The change of regime in Romania of 1989 gave George Cantacuzino the opportunity of a breakthrough. In 1990 he was appointed inspector at the “Direction of Historical Monuments, Aggregates and Sites” and in 1994 promoted to advisor of the Direction of Historical Monuments. Finally in 1996 he secured a position of scientific researcher at the “Vasile Pârvan” Institute of Archeology of the Romanian Academy.

Gheorghe Cantacuzino is also vicepresident of the Commission for the History of Cities in Romania (Comisia de Istorie a Oraşelor din România – CIOR) of the Romanian Academy.^[1]

In 2001 he received the Nicolae Iorga prize of the Romanian Academy^[2]

Research

Gheorghe Cantacuzino participated in archeological excavations in several sites such as:

• Bucharest – Mărcuţa monastery,
• Brădet Hermitage, Argeş County,
• Moldoviţa Monastery Suceava County – ruins of the old church,
• Humor Monastery, Suceava County,
• Târgovişte: Princely court, Sf.Vineri church,
• Stelea Monastery, Târgovişte,
• Poenari Castle, Argeş County,
• Vodiţa Monastery, Mehedinţi County,
• Tismana Monastery, Gorj County,
• Şemlacul Mic, Timiş, Săraca Monastery,
• Putna Monastery, Suceava county,
• Războieni, Neamț – Ştefan cel Mare, church,
• Sânpetru, Hunedoara – Sf. Gheorghe church,
• Turnu Citadel, Turnu Măgurele,
• Leşnic, Hunedoara – Sf. Nicolae church,
• Câmpulung-Muscel – old princely court.

Publications

Books

• Cetăţi medievale din Ţara Românească în secolele XIII – XIV, Bucureşti, Editura Enciclopedică, 2001, 296 p. cu ilustr.;
• Câmpulung. Vechi monumente şi biserici, Bucureşti, Editura Vremea, 2002, 112 p. cu ilustraţii.
• Mănăstirea Tismana Bucureşti, Editura Vremea, 2004
• Atlas istoric al oraşelor din România. Seria B. Ţara Românească. Fascicula 1. Târgovişte Bucureşti, Editura Enciclopedică, 2006.

References