Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion
Open-knowledge reference entry
The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Medallion is one panel from a set of four created by Jozef C. Mazur. It honors Marie Curie and currently resides in the Polish Room at the University at Buffalo Libraries.
History
On August 3, 1955, the University at Buffalo created the Polish Room. Polish-American artist Jozef C. Mazur was hired to plan and decorate the room. Items included a set of four stained-glass medallions depicting famous Poles.
At some point between the founding and when the Polish Room was moved in 1978, the medallions went missing. In 2007, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Medallion was found for sale on eBay by University at Buffalo alumnus Gregory Witul. Witul was able to coordinate the return of the medallion to the university. A formal re-dedication was held on November 4, 2007.
On April 6, 2008, Witul received the Am-Pol Eagle Citizen of the Year Award for Heritage, for finding and coordinating the return of the medallion.
The public source identifies “Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion” as open-knowledge reference entry. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Maria, Skłodowska-Curie and Medallion.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion”, the useful work is to connect “open-knowledge reference entry” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q16932439. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1955, 1978, 2007 and 2008.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion primary sources, Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion archive and Maria research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Maria Skłodowska-Curie Medallion” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.