Inventor of a silk spinning machine, pioneer of science in the Canary Islands and author of technical studies in the 18th century.
María del Carmen Betancourt y Molina was born in 1758 in Tenerife. Although biographical details are scarce — as is the case with so many women scientists in history — what we know about her makes her an exceptional pioneering figure. She lived during the Enlightenment, when the Canaries saw a flourishing of economic and industrial reforms driven by the newly created Sociedad Económica de Amigos del País.
Her principal contribution was the design and construction of a high-precision silk spinning machine, which she presented to the Real Sociedad Económica de Amigos del País de Tenerife. The machine considerably improved the productivity of spinning, an important economic sector in the islands during the 18th century. Her invention was officially recognised by the Society and she received honours and recognition during her lifetime, which was extraordinarily uncommon for a woman at that time.
María del Carmen Betancourt represents the hidden face of the Canarian Enlightenment: that of women who, despite the structural obstacles of the era, found spaces for scientific and technical creativity. Her figure has been championed by contemporary Canarian feminist historiography as a precursor of women in science and technology on the islands. She died in 1824.