I first met Zofia Sztetyłło in 1958, when I was a freshman and she a young assistant of our common mentor Kazimierz Michałowski. These were the years when the international career of Polish archaeology in the Mediterranean began for good.
She joined the first after-war project of Michałowski, a dig on the Greek site of Mirmeki in the Crimea (1956-1958). This experience has determined her lifetime interest in Ancient Greece. With her characteristic common sense, she embarked from the beginning on a precise study field of amphora stamps, realizing the wide perspectives the study of these modest artefacts opens on ancient commerce and economy. Over the years, she has published several catalogs of finds and collections from Nea Paphos, Alexandria and Tell Atrib in Egypt, and of course from Mirmeki.
Later on, she took part in various excavations in Egypt and especially Cyprus. For many years, she was a constant and highly appreciated member of Polish teams working at Nea Paphos and Marina el-Alamein. Personally, I remember her from a season in Palmyra.
Teaching was however her main passion and she has formed generations of students for nearly forty years. I have never met anyone who would not remember her fondly for the attention and care shown to her pupils. More than that, Zosia, as she was called by friends, was always busy helping people around her and settled many difficult problems that were constantly brought to her by close and not-so-close colleagues at the University.
Her long life was well spent.
Michał Gawlikowski