Teohari or Teochari Antonescu (c. 1865/1867 – January 11, 1910) was a Romanian archeologist and historian of antiquity. He was born in either Bucharest or Giurgiu, possibly out of wedlock, and had a destitute childhood; he compensated with his scholastic achievements, emerging as a disciple and imitator of Alexandru Odobescu. Like Odobescu, he pioneered Dacology—his acclaimed graduation paper from the University of Bucharest (1889) was focused on the Cabeiri cult in Roman Dacia. He was also discovered as both an intellectual and political ally by political philosopher Titu Maiorescu, who inducted him into Junimea society. With Odobescu and Maiorescu's support, Antonescu was able to study abroad, then to return home to teaching posts at Saint Sava National College, and then at the University of Iași. From Iași, he directed the effort to revive Junimist activities. For a while, he mainly expressed himself through Convorbiri Literare, a Junimist review of which he was also editor; it hosted his numerous essays on ancient art and history, going as far back as the origin and evolution of mankind. Antonescu impressed his contemporaries with his modern teaching methods and his familiarity with developments in archeology. He was also commended for his incidental contributions to Oriental studies, which included his sample translations from Vedic Sanskrit and Sumerian. He nevertheless generated controversy by directly attacking older historians such as Grigore Tocilescu and A. D. Xenopol, and by presenting dissenting views on ancient monuments and complexes, from Tropaeum Traiani to Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa. Antonescu was also at times vocal in his support for political Junimism: like the faction itself, he joined, quit, then rejoined the Conservative Party, becoming the focus of scrutiny with his violent rhetoric. He was similarly active within the Cultural League for the Unity of All Romanians, which he used as a venue for his practical-minded, conservative, version of Romanian nationalism. Antonescu's diverse public involvements were always secondary to his scholarly work; they were also interrupted by his neglected cancer, which killed him in 1910, when he was in his nearly forties. Posterity rediscovered him as a political diarist.
Biography
Mysterious origin and early life Antonescu’s precise origins are uncertain, and no birth certificate has been found. His obituary note in Opinia daily informs that he was born in Bucharest, capital of the Principality of Romania, on September 1, 1866. Two encyclopedias state the same date and place, while a third gives 1867. Historian Lucian Nastasă gives the earlier date, saying his father was a minor trader, Petru Antonescu, but that the latter's date of death (December 1, 1865) raises serious doubts about his paternity. Antonescu's disciple Ioan Andrieșescu knew him to have been born in 1866, but at Giurgiu. Researchers Valeriu and Sanda Râpeanu also advance "1866" as the birth year, while Antonescu's fellow historian, Nicolae Iorga, ambiguously refers to him as "a Bucharester from Giurgiu". In 1992, museologist Emil Păunescu proposed that Antonescu was born at Giurgiu "in winter 1866 or in spring of the following year". Several 21st-century books also give Giurgiu as the birthplace, while favoring 1867 as the year. Writing in 1936, scholar Constantin Rădulescu-Motru recalled that Antonescu was raised in a poor household by a Greek monk, Antonie, relaying a rumor that he was the monk's illegitimate son. The name Teohari ("gift of God"), and the surname that may be linked to the monk's first name, lend credence to this notion. His mother Alexandrina (Lucșița) was very poor, washing clothes for the wealthy families of Giurgiu. Following the death of Petru Antonescu (in the event he was Teohari's father), she remarried, taking the name Petrescu. As recalled by Teohari’s daughter Adriana (Adina), Lucșița was an unfriendly, uncouth woman, ill-suited to city life; he brought her to Iași during several winters. He always avoided discussions about his parents, finding them embarrassing. It is possible that one of the rich men whose clothes his mother washed granted the boy a scholarship, helping cover his expenses while at the Higher Normal School in Bucharest. In addition to keeping silent on his paternity and social status, he was sensitive about his appearance. He believed that the cut on the right side of his jaw, and particularly his sunken eyes, would mean that no woman would love him for disinterested reasons. The first records of Antonescu's education date to 1878–1879, when he attended the Giurgiu gymnasium, today Ion Maiorescu National College. As classes were suspended around the time of his admission due to the Romanian War of Independence, there is no school record of his birthdate, although the information points to 1867. He finished his first year in fourth place, out of 35 students; in his second, he had the same rank, but only 20 remained. He started his third year in 1880 but withdrew, attending school in Bucharest for the next eight years, no record of which survives. The version provided by Opinia has him as an alumnus of Saint Sava National College. The same paper notes his stints as a clerk at the Ministry of Internal Affairs (1885–1886) and as a substitute teacher of French in Ploiești (1888–1889). A subject of the newly formed Romanian Kingdom, Antonescu attended the University of Bucharest, graduating in October 1889 with a thesis on the Cabeiri. According to Andrieșescu, it was "ampler and more innovative than most that came out in that period". Among the early reviewers, antiquarian George Ionescu-Gion was much impressed, suggesting that the research was "precious" and fulfilling "all the requirements of science." As observed by Păunescu, it was the work of a "brilliant student", and still cited as mandatory reading 100 years after its first print. Antonescu's paper was directed and heavily influenced by Alexandru Odobescu, who effectively introduced him to archeology. Antonescu himself wrote that it was only a matter of serendipity that he was ever coached by Odobescu, who then helped advance his career. More precisely, he happened to take unsolicited advice from historian Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu, who told him that his original adviser, Gian-Luigi Frollo, was not well-liked in the community.
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