Maria Salomea Skłodowska Curie (Polish: [ˈmarja salɔˈmɛa skwɔˈdɔfska kiˈri]; born Skłodowska; November 7, 1867 – July 4, 1934), known as Marie Curie (/ˈkjʊəri/ KURE-ee; French: [maʁi kyʁi]), was a Polish-born scientist who became a French citizen. She was a physicist and chemist. In 1903, she shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with her husband, Pierre Curie, for their research on radioactivity, a term she created. In 1911, she won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering the elements radium and polonium, isolating radium, and studying its properties.

Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person to win two Nobel Prizes, and the only person to win Nobel Prizes in two different fields. She and Pierre Curie were the first married couple to win a Nobel Prize, starting a family legacy of five Nobel Prizes. In 1906, she became the first woman to teach at the University of Paris.

She was born in Warsaw, which was part of the Russian Empire. She studied at a secret university in Warsaw and began her scientific training there. In 1891, at age 24, she moved to Paris to join her older sister, Bronisława, and earned her degrees there. In 1895, she married Pierre Curie, and together they studied radioactivity. Pierre died in 1906 in a street accident in Paris.

Under her leadership, scientists first used radioactive materials to treat cancer. She founded the Curie Institute in Paris in 1920 and another in Warsaw in 1932. Both institutes are still important medical research centers. During World War I, she created mobile X-ray units to help soldiers in hospitals.

Although she became a French citizen, Marie Curie never forgot her Polish roots. She taught her daughters Polish and took them to visit Poland. She named polonium, the first element she discovered with Pierre, after her homeland.

Marie Curie died in 1934 at age 66 in a sanatorium in France. Her death was likely caused by aplastic anemia, a disease linked to radiation exposure from her research and wartime work. She received many honors, including being buried in the Paris Panthéon in 1995. Poland celebrated 2011 as the Year of Marie Curie during the International Year of Chemistry. She is the subject of many books, including Madame Curie by her daughter, Ève Curie. The man-made element curium is named after her.

Life and career

Maria Salomea Skłodowska was born in Warsaw, then part of the Russian Empire, on November 7, 1867. She was the fifth and youngest child of Bronisława, née Boguska, and Władysław Skłodowski, both well-known teachers. Her older siblings were Zofia (born 1862), Józef (born 1863), Bronisława (born 1865), and Helena (born 1866).

The family had suffered financial losses due to their support for Polish independence movements, including the January Uprising of 1863–1865. This hardship made it difficult for Maria and her siblings to achieve success. Maria’s paternal grandfather, Józef Skłodowski, had been the principal of a school attended by Bolesław Prus, a famous Polish writer.

Władysław Skłodowski taught mathematics and physics, subjects Maria later studied. He also directed two boys’ schools in Warsaw. When Russian officials removed laboratory equipment from Polish schools, he brought the equipment home and taught his children how to use it. He was later fired for supporting Polish independence and had to take lower-paying jobs. Maria’s mother, Bronisława, ran a prestigious girls’ boarding school in Warsaw but left her position after Maria was born. She died of tuberculosis in 1878 when Maria was ten years old. Earlier, Maria’s oldest sister, Zofia, had died of typhus. Maria’s father was an atheist, while her mother was a devout Catholic. After these losses, Maria stopped practicing Catholicism and became agnostic.

At age ten, Maria attended J. Sikorska’s boarding school. She later graduated from a girls’ secondary school in 1883 with a gold medal. After a period of illness, she lived with relatives and then with her father in Warsaw, where she tutored students. Unable to attend a university because she was a woman, Maria and her sister Bronisława joined the Flying University, a secret Polish school that allowed women to study.

Maria and Bronisława agreed that Maria would help pay for Bronisława’s medical studies in Paris, and in return, Bronisława would later help Maria. Maria worked as a tutor in Warsaw and later as a governess for a wealthy family, the Żorawskis, while continuing her studies. During this time, she fell in love with Kazimierz Żorawski, a future mathematician. His parents refused their marriage because Maria had no money. The relationship ended, and Kazimierz later became a professor at Kraków University. He would later visit a statue of Maria Skłodowska in Warsaw, erected in 1935.

In 1890, Maria’s sister Bronisława, who had married a Polish doctor, invited Maria to join her in Paris. Maria declined at first because she could not afford university tuition. Her father helped her save money, and she continued studying through books, letters, and tutoring. In 1891, she returned to Warsaw to work as a governess until late 1891. She studied at the Flying University and began scientific training in a chemistry lab in Warsaw. The lab was run by her cousin, Józef Boguski, who had worked with the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleyev.

In late 1891, Maria moved to Paris. She stayed with her sister before renting a small apartment near the university. She studied physics, chemistry, and mathematics at the University of Paris, working as a tutor to support herself. In 1893, she earned a physics degree and worked in an industrial lab. She later received a second degree in 1894.

Maria began her scientific work in Paris by studying the magnetic properties of steel for a Polish organization. That same year, she met Pierre Curie, a physics instructor, through a Polish scientist. Pierre helped her find lab space for her research. Their shared love of science led to a close relationship. Pierre proposed marriage, but Maria hesitated because she wanted to return to Poland. Pierre said he would move to Poland with her if needed. However, she was denied a place at Kraków University due to sexism. A letter from Pierre convinced her to stay in Paris and pursue a PhD. Pierre earned his own doctorate in 1895 and became a professor.

Maria and Pierre married on July 26, 1895, in Sceaux without a religious ceremony. Maria wore a dark blue outfit that she later used in her lab. They enjoyed traveling and bicycling together. Pierre became Maria’s scientific partner and life partner.

In 1895, Wilhelm Röntgen discovered X-rays, though the mechanism behind their production was not yet understood.

Legacy

Marie Curie’s scientific work and the challenges she faced had a lasting influence on the world during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Her research helped begin the study of modern nuclear physics, cancer treatments, and medical imaging using radiation. The methods she developed to separate radioactive materials are still used in scientific research and medical practices today. Cornell University professor L. Pearce Williams noted:

Marie Curie’s discoveries changed old beliefs in physics and chemistry. Her work also had a big impact on society. To achieve her scientific success, she faced obstacles in both her home country and the country where she later lived because she was a woman. She helped train other women in science at the Radium Institute, creating opportunities for women in physics and chemistry.

Marie Curie was known for her honesty and simple lifestyle. After receiving a small scholarship in 1893, she gave it back in 1897 when she started working and earning money. She used much of her first Nobel Prize money to support friends, family, students, and research partners. She chose not to patent the process for isolating radium, so scientists could study it freely. She asked that money and awards be given to the scientific institutions she worked with instead of to herself. She and her husband often declined honors and medals. Albert Einstein once said she was probably the only person who didn’t let fame change her.

Commemorations

Marie Curie is one of the most well-known scientists in history. She is celebrated worldwide for her scientific achievements and has been honored in many ways, including in pop culture. She also earned many honorary degrees from universities around the world.

Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. She was the first person to win two Nobel Prizes and the only woman to win in two different fields. She is the only person to win Nobel Prizes in more than one science. Some of the awards and honors she received include:

• Nobel Prize in Physics (1903, with her husband Pierre Curie and Henri Becquerel)
• Davy Medal (1903, with Pierre)
• Matteucci Medal (1904, with Pierre)
• Actonian Prize (1907)
• Elliott Cresson Medal (1909)
• Legion of Honour (1909, rejected)
• Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1911)
• Civil Order of Alfonso XII (1919)
• Franklin Medal of the American Philosophical Society (1921)
• Order of the White Eagle (2018, posthumously)

Many things have been named after Marie Curie, including:

• The curie (symbol Ci), a unit of radioactivity, is named in her honor, along with Pierre Curie.
• The element with atomic number 96 is called curium (symbol Cm).
• Three radioactive minerals are named after the Curies: curite, sklodowskite, and cuprosklodowskite.
• The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fellowship program, which helps young scientists work in other countries.
• A Paris metro station (in Ivry) was renamed after the Curies in 2007.
• A planned underground station in Montreal, called Marie-Curie, and a nearby road, Avenue Marie Curie, are named in her honor.
• The Polish research nuclear reactor Maria
• The 7000 Curie asteroid
• Marie Curie charity in the United Kingdom
• The IEEE Marie Sklodowska-Curie Award, given for achievements in nuclear and plasma sciences
• The Marie Curie Medal, an annual science award in Poland
• The Marie Curie–Sklodowska Medal and Prize, given by the Institute of Physics in London
• Maria Skłodowska-Curie University in Lublin, Poland
• Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris
• Maria Skłodowska-Curie National Research Institute of Oncology in Poland
• Schools named after her, such as École élémentaire Marie-Curie in Canada, Curie Metropolitan High School in the United States, Marie Curie High School in Vietnam, and Lycée français Marie Curie in Switzerland
• Rue Madame Curie in Beirut, Lebanon
• A beetle species named Psammodes sklodowskae

Many books have been written about Marie Curie, including:

• Madame Curie (1938) by Ève Curie, Marie Curie’s daughter
• Marie Curie: A Life (1987) by Françoise Giroud
• Marie Curie: A Life (1996) by Susan Quinn
• Obsessive Genius: The Inner World of Marie Curie (2005) by Barbara Goldsmith
• Radioactive: Marie and Pierre Curie, a Tale of Love and Fallout (2011) by Lauren Redniss, adapted into a 2019 film
• The Elements of Marie Curie: How the Glow of Radium Lit a Path for Women in Science (2024) by Dava Sobel

Marie Curie has been the subject of many films, including:

• Madame Curie (1943), a U.S. film directed by Mervyn LeRoy, starring Greer Garson
• Les Palmes de M. Schutz (1997), a French film directed by Claude Pinoteau, starring Isabelle Huppert
• Marie Curie, une femme sur le front (2014), a French-Belgian film directed by Alain Brunard, starring Dominique Reymond
• Marie Curie: The Courage of Knowledge (2016), a European film starring Karolina Gruszka
• Super Science Friends (2016), an American animated series featuring Hedy Gregor as Marie Curie
• Radioactive (2019), a British film directed by Marjane Satrapi, starring Rosamund Pike

Marie Curie is also the subject of plays, such as False Assumptions (2013) by Lawrence Aronovitch and Manya: The Living History of Marie Curie (2014) by Susan Marie Frontczak. Another play, The Half-Life of Marie Curie (2019) by Lauren Gunderson, portrays her struggles after winning the 1911 Nobel Prize.

A 2018 Korean musical titled Marie Curie has been performed in Asia and Europe, including an Off West End premiere in London in 2024.

Marie Curie has appeared on more than 600 postage stamps worldwide.

Between 1989 and 1996, she was featured on a 20,000-złoty banknote in Poland. In 2011, a commemorative 20-złoty banknote was issued by the National Bank of Poland to mark the 100th anniversary of her Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

In 1994, the Bank of France issued a 500-franc banknote featuring Marie and Pierre Curie. Since 2024, she has been depicted on French 50-euro-cent coins to honor her contributions to French history.

On November 7, 2011, a Google Doodle celebrated Marie Curie.

In 2025, the European Central Bank announced that Marie Curie would appear on the obverse of twenty-euro banknotes in a future redesign, if the theme "European culture" is chosen over "Rivers and birds."

Marie Curie was photographed in at least one color Autochrome Lumière photograph, which is preserved at the Musée Curie in Paris