Maria Cicherschi Ropală (1881–1973), was a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n medical examiner and a professor at the Institute of Medicine and Pharmacy in

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

. She was the first female

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into Manner of death, the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

in Europe.

Biography

Maria Cicherschi was born in 1881 in Iași, Romania, the daughter of Eleonora Andoniu (daughter of Dimitrie Andoniu) and Frantz Cicherschi. Maria graduated from the “Oltea Doamna” High School for Girls in Iași in 1902 and attended courses of the Faculty of Medicine of the

University of Iași The Alexandru Ioan Cuza University (Romanian: ''Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza"''; acronym: UAIC) is a public university located in Iași, Romania. Founded by an 1860 decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, under whom the former Academia Mih ...

. She obtained the title of "Doctor of Medicine" in 1907 with the thesis titled ''"Contributions to the biological study of female crime from a forensic point of view"'' completed under the direction of Professor

George Bogdan George Bogdan (1859–1930) was a Romanian physician and university professor. Bogdan attended the National College in Iași, graduating in 1876. He studied medicine in France, and earned a doctorate in psychiatry there. After returning home, h ...

, president of the Society of Physicians and Naturalists.

Career

After finishing medical school, she went to work in the hydrotherapy laboratory of the baths in the

Slănic-Moldova Slănic-Moldova, formerly Băile Slănic, is a town and a spa resort in Bacău County, Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the s ...

spas, then as a doctor in several communities in the country's south. She also worked in the

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

Society of Romanian Ladies, during military campaigns of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, which caused her to enlist as a doctor at the front. In 1919, Maria Ropală was appointed assistant at the Department of Forensic Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine in Iași. She later completed internships in Paris with professors Victor Balthazard (forensic medicine) and

Henri Claude Henri Charles Jules Claude (31 March 1869 – 29 November 1945) was a French psychiatrist and neurologist born in Paris. He studied medicine under Charles-Joseph Bouchard (1837-1915), and was an assistant to Fulgence Raymond (1844-1910) at the S ...

(forensic psychiatry) becoming "the first woman-forensic physician in Europe, and among the first in the world." After returning to Romania, she was appointed foreman and forensic doctor of the Iași Court of Justice where she worked for 20 years. She helped Bogdan with the production of his first treatise on forensic medicine and taught at the university. In 1930, after Bogdan's death, she took over the management of the department. Maria Cicherschi Ropală was a member of the French Society of Forensic Medicine.

Personal life

She married Dr. Emil Ropală and they had a daughter, Carmen Ropală-Gasparovici (1911–1992). Maria Ropală died in 1973 and is buried in

Bellu Cemetery Șerban Vodă Cemetery (commonly known as Bellu Cemetery) is the largest and most famous cemetery in Bucharest, Romania. It is located on a plot of land donated to the local administration by Baron Barbu Bellu. It has been in use since 1858. T ...

, with the tombstone saying: "Maria Ropală Cicherschi – the first female forensic scientist in Europe."

Biography

Career

Personal life

References

See also