2026-02-03

It is with deep sadness that we learned of the death of Professor, DSc Barbara Kosmowska-Ceranowicz on January 31, 2026. She passed away at the age of 95, having devoted almost all of her life to amber research and her passion for amber.

After completing her geological studies, she devoted her professional life to the Museum of the Earth of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. She conducted research on amber-bearing sediments and amber, producing hundreds of publications in scientific journals, conference proceedings, and publications accompanying exhibitions and museums, as well as in trade and popular science publications. Many of these works, including the monographs "Mysteries of Amber" (1989), "Poland: A Tale of Amber" (2006), and "Amber in Poland and the World" (2012), are essential reading for any amber enthusiast.

The professor studied and tracked amber in every corner, amassing a library of over 1,000 infrared spectra of fossil and subfossil resins worldwide, as well as spectral characteristics of modified resins and Baltic amber imitations. The result of this work is the Atlas: IR Spectra of Resins from the World. Characteristics of Their Holotypes (published in collaboration with Professor Norbert Vavra in 2015). This work is exceptionally valuable, serving as a veritable encyclopedia, a must-have in every gemological laboratory.

We became friends because she, along with Wiesław Gierłowski, led the annual popular science seminar at the AMBERIF International Amber and Gemstone Fair in Gdańsk, organized from 1994 to 2019.

The Professor's ongoing collaboration with the community of amber craftsmen, collectors, and researchers resulted in the establishment of the International Amber Association, of which she was a co-initiator and co-founder. Sharing her knowledge, she helped foster a better understanding of the properties of Baltic amber and encouraged a growing number of manufacturers to preserve its natural forms and colors in jewelry production.

Honored by the Association alongside Wiesław Gierłowski as the Amber Personality of the Century, the Professor possessed the highest scientific and ethical qualifications, enjoying immense authority among geologists and amber researchers. As a scientist, she was meticulous, inquisitive, abhorrent to mediocrity, committed, and utterly devoted to her beloved work with amber. As an educator, she was gentle, patient, eager to impart knowledge, skillfully adapting her lectures to the cognitive abilities of her audience. As a gemologist, she was discreet, understanding, yet uncompromising in matters of substantive importance. As a person, she was warm, friendly, and helpful.

She trusts that we will not forget any of her lessons...

We extend our condolences to her family and loved ones,
The IAA Board