Ancient Old Testament Scrolls
To Be Published in Photographs

NEW HAVEN, Conn.—Old Testament manuscripts more
than 2,000 years old, which were accidentally discovered
in a Palestine cave near the Dead Sea by wandering Arab
.Bedouins, will be published in photographic form with suit-
able transcription this fall.
This announcement by the American Schools of Oriental

-.41116. ■

Research at Yale University cli-
maxes a scientific fortune hunt
which has been conducted by
Hebrew, American, French and
English archaeologists in the
Holy Land despite continuous
warfare during the past two
years.
The oldest known copy of the
Book of Isaiah, the most ancient
complete Biblical document ever
found, will be included in a
volume now in preparation as
well as the commentary on the
book of Habakkuk, a minor. He-
brew prophet.
Other volumes will follow soon
thereafter, based on original an-
imal-skin manuscripts now in
the United States but not owned
or held by the American Schools
of Oriental Research. These doc-
uments are in this country in
the posgession of Metropolitan
Anthanasius Yeshue Samuel, of
the Syrian Orthodox Monastery
of St. Mark in Jerusalem. Schol.
ars of the American Schools
have made photographic copies
of these precious documents.
Available to Scholars
"The American Schools oM)r-
iental R es e arc h are now
using their good offices to make
the material in the United
States available to all scholars
in Israel and England, or any-
where else, who have portions
of these ancient Hebrew manu-
scripts at hand," said Prof. Carl
H. Kraeling, chairman of the
department of Near Eastern
Languages and Literatures at
Yale and president of the ASOR.
The - volume to be published
this year will be under the
editorship Of Prof. Millar Bur-
rows, Winkley Professor of Bib-
lical Theology at Yale and for-
mer president of the American
Schools of Oriental Research,
who was in Jerusalem at the
time the scrolls were found. Per-
mission to publish this material
was received by the American
Schools from the .Syrian Metro-
politan.
. The romantic events leading
up to discovery of the manu-
scripts had their setting in war-
torn Jerusalem in 1947 and early
1948, when Bedouins brought a
group of the parchment scrolls
to St. Mark's Monastery in the
Old City. They were not recog-
nized as being very ancient Bib-
lical manuscripts until many
months later when they were ex-
amined by Prof. Eliezer Sukenik,
of the Hebrew University, and
John C. Trever, Fellow of the
American Schools and now di-
rector of the Department of
English Bible of the Interna-

AJC Central Chapter
Lists Year's Officers

Cental Chapter of the Wom-
en's Division of the American
Jewish Congress announces the

20 — THE JEWISH NEWS

Friday, August 26, 1949

Detroit Musicians
Stirred by Herzl's
Vienna Farewell

By MARY KOZENN and
JULIUS CHAJES
tional Council of Religious Ed-
VIENNA—We are still under
ucation in Chicago. Word of the the deep influence of the uni-
discovery flashed through the que event, which we were privi-
scholarly world.
leged to witness here. It was the
Some of the manuscripts came farewell celebration before the
into possession of scholars at transfer of Dr. Theodor Herzl's
the Hebrew University on Mount body to Israel.
Scopus. Eventually the manu-
The festivities started with a
script cave was found by Jordan special religious service in the
Government officials, in whose old and much revered Seiten-
territory it is located, which ex- stettentempel. The place was
cavated it and turned up many filled to capacity - many hours
additional fragments.
before, the appointed time. Hun-
dreds of Jews were standing out-
Found Near Dead Sea
The cave is located at Ain side and. listened to loudspeak-
Fashkha, above the northwest- ers, which were especially pre-
ern shore of the Dead Sea in pared for the occasion.
Palestine. There now are three
A mystic and deeply felt de-
major collections of Biblical and votion prevailed. Next to the
Hebrew material in existence, as altar, on the platform were the
coffins with the last earthly re-
follows:
1. Four scrolls were brought mains of the great leader and
to the United States in Febru- his parents and sister. They
ary by the Syrian Archbishop, were covered with Israeli flags
along with a group of manu- and flanked by an honor guard
script fragments. The scrolls in- of leading Viennese citizens and
clude the Isaiah manuscript, Israeli soldiers. Visitors passed
which has the distinction of be- by the coffins in awe, mute, vis-
—International Radiophoto
ing the oldest existing manu- ibly touched.
Israeli soldiers stand guard at the casket of Dr. Theodor
The service opened with a joy-
script of a complete BOok of
the Bible in any language; the ful psalm, most impressively Herzl in the courtyard of the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem
Commentary on Habakkuk; a sung by Cantor Morganstern as- where it was brought for reburial from Vienna,
manual of discipline of a minor sisted by a male chorus. The
Jewish sect which existed at sermon was delivered by Chief
some time in the first or second Rabbi Dr. Eisenberg, who told
century B.C. (over two thousand the audience that only once be-
years ago) ; and a fourth scroll, fore was a similar occasion in
which is still something of a. Jewish history. It happened in
mystery, since it is still to be the ancient time of Moses, who
fulfilled the last wish of Josef
opened and read.
JERUSALEM, (JTA)—The re- amid an ocean of blue-white
2. Scrolls obtained by Prof. and took the latter's remains
Eliezer Sukenik, professor of along when the Jews left Egypt. mains of Dr. Theodor Herzl, banners along the Tel Aviv-Je-
Palestinian Archaeology at the
"The day has come," said the father of political Zionism, were rusalem route which the cortege
Hebrew University and a direc- Rabbi, "and we are fulfilling the brought to their final resting followed. Not a single untoward
tor of the Museum of Jewish wish of our prophetic leader." place .on Mt. Herzl here after be- incident was reported through-
Antiquities, have proved He paused for a second, and all ing interred in Austria 45 years.. out the day. Police Inspector-
Thousands of Jews . followed General Yechezkiel Shaohar told
to be of first importance. of us were overcome by the
They came from the same cave greatness of the moment. Every- the cortege of 64 vehicles which the Jewish Telegraphic Agency
and include, according to in- one's mind turned to the past, brOught the coffin from Tel Aviv that the behavior of the crowds
was exemplary, with not a single
formation which has reached to the horrible sufferings of the to Jerusalem.
this country, the following: "The last decade and to the supreme
The procession made its first complaint lodged with the po-
Scroll of Thanksgiving Songs," sacrifice which our people have stop near the Mikveh Israel set- lice.
The funeral of Dr. Herzl's par-
three manuscript documents of paid. How few have survived to tlement in exactly the same
hymns of thanksgiving which witness this unique day! -/
place where Dr. Herzl, in 1898, ents and sister, whose coffins
In the evening another cele- met with Kaiser Wilhelm of Ger- were brought here Aug. 16, to-
were wholly unknown hereto-
fore; a scroll of "The War Be- bration took place in Vienna's many to whom he appealed for gether with the leader's casket,
tween the Children of Light and largest concert hall. More than support of 'his idea to acquire was held Aug. 19.
the Children of Darkness," in 2,000 people attended and in the Palestine for the Jews as a Jew-
The coffins were reinterred hi
which there is an account of the boxes sat representatives of the ish state. It then proceeded a single grave some 1.000 feet
Austrian
government
as
well
as
battle formation used by the
to the Rishon L' Zion colony from the grave of Dr. Herz'.
Jews in a period probably before those of the American, British, where Dr. Herzl spent his first
The ceremony marking the re-
the Mac cab e an priest-kings French and Russian occupation- night on his only visit to Pales- burial of Dr. Herzl's family was
arose to govern the ancient He- al force. The main speaker was tine. The settlers at each col- modest, with a small military
brews—it tells of stone-slingers, Dr. Isidor Schalit, secretary and ony met the cortege with plac- guard of honor and several hun-
cavalrymen and methods of cel- first co-worker of Dr. Herzl, who ards and .banners, most of which dred elder Zionists and a number
ebrating victory; a part of the depicted his Masters' great vision carried the excerpt from Dr. of representatives of the Jewish
Book of Isaiah, which shows and praised the unfaltering de Herzl's diary, "When we arrive, Agency participating in the rites.
that the manuscript; was identi- votion and heroic spirit of Is- Jerusalem will be the most Kaddish was recited by Agency
cal in text and spelling with the raeli youth whose • sacrifices beautiful city in the world."
executive member S. Z. Shragai
Masoretic version, the standard made Herzl's dream come true.
When the convoy reached the as the coffins were lowered into
The Vienna Symphony Or-
Hebrew version of the Bible. chestra,
under the direction of Jerusalem suburb of Romena, it their final resting-place. Kaddish
Prof. Sukenik carried on his in- George Singer of Tel-Aviv, pre- was met by thousands of Jeru- was also recited over the grave
vestigations during the bitter sented then the world premiere salemites who lined up on both of Dr. Herzl following the re-
fighting in the Holy Land de- of Mahler-Kalkstein's "DaVid" sides of the streets. It pro- interment of his family.
pite many handicaps.
The area in the Negev between
Symphony. The highlight of the ceeded to the premises of the
Some in Fragments
evening was the handing over Jewish Agency where it was met the. settlements of Nirim and
3. Fragments of manuscripts of
the scroll by the president of at the courtyard by Preinier Revivim was offically named
which are now in London in the the Vienna Juedische Kultusge- David Ben Ghrion, members of "Chevel Herzl," meaning Herzl
British Museum, where they meinde to the Israeli delegation. his Cabinet, the Jewish Agency District.
were brought by Dr. G. Lankest- The eventful day closed with executive and all the members
* * -*
er Harding, chief curator of an- the singing of "Hatikvah" ac- of the Jerusalem Municipal U.S. Friends Will Erect
tiquities of the Kingdom of Jor- companied by the orchestra, and Council. The chiefs of the Army Memorial in Jerusalem
dan, represent the latest finds 'the words "Lashuv l'Erets Avo- services then carried the coffin
NEW YORK, (JTA — Judge
in this cave near the Dead Sea. tenu" were never before so deep- from the black-draped vehicle to Morris Rothenberg, acting na-
Many fragments were scraped ly appreciated than on this oc- a specially-erected platform sur- tional chairman of the United
from the hillside cave and are casion.
rounded by 45 Israeli flags sym- Palestine Appeal, announced
in ancient Hebrew—some of the
bolizing the number of years plans for a Herzl memorial to
original scrolls must have been
that Dr. Herzl 'was buried be built in Jerusalem with the
as old as the third or fourth
abroad.
aid of . American funds. It will
century, B.C. This is all that
A proclamation on behalf of include a mausoleum, a public
remained after the major manu-
the Jewish Agency was read by park of about 30 acres planted
scripts — including those in
Berl Locker, chairthan of the with "Herzl Cedars" and special
America and the Hebrew Uni- . Plans have been completed executive.
roads for thousands of visitors
versity—had been removed from% for the Program Planners' In-
Approximately 20,000 people expected from all over the world.
the cave by Bedouin Arabs ear- stitute, sponsored annually by filed past the coffin while it lay A competition for the most suit-
lier. Dr. Harding posted an Arab the Jewish Community Council, in state in the courtyard of the able plans for -the mausoleum
Legion guard at the site.
to be held at Shaarey Zedek, agency. Jerusalem has not been will be announced shortly.
The manuscripts fared some- Sept. 15, and at the Jewish Com- as crowed since the 1948 siege.
The hill, on top of which Herzl
what badly during their life- munity Center, Sept. 18.
Hotels are full and for several is buried, covers an area of 125
time and contaii? numerous
Rabbi Morris Adler, Chairman days visitors have been sleeping acres of land provided by the
tears, gaps and missing sections. of the Culture Commission of the on cots in schools or in hotel JNF and rises some 2,800 feet
The Isaiah scroll shows a dark- J e w i s h Community Council, corridors.
above sea level, the highest point
ened center where many readers stated that the Program Plan-
Thousands of members of the in Jerusalem. It provides a view
had held and roled it while it ners' Institute will give all or- Jerusalem population sought of the greater part of the city
was in use. The scribe who pro-N ganizations the opportunity to in vain to enter the courtyard and the Jewish settlements in
duced the scroll had a very reg- learn how good programming of the agency to witness the the neighborhood, including
ular hand and was skilled with may be achieved with a mini- coffin of Dr. Herzl during the Arza, where Herzl planted a
his pen. Worms have gotten into mum of expense. "Planning for several hours it lay on the cedar during his visit to Pales-
many of the documents to add the Jewish Holidays," "The Role special platform. Members of tine in 1898.
to the complications. On all of Jewish Music," "Films, Film- the "Neturei Karta," extreme
manuscripts examined by staff strips, Records and their Uses," Orthodox sect, boycotted the fu-
Egypt Releases 34 Jews
members of The American are some of the topics which neral despite the fact that
TEL AVIV—( JTA )—Thirty-
Schools of Oriental Research, it will be discussed. Specialists in Agudah leaders, including Cabi- four of a group of 49 Jews de-
was noted that the leather used every field of cultural program- net Minister I. M. Lewin, joined tained by the Egyptian Govern-
had been specially treated and ming will lead discussions and in the rites.
ment have been freed and have
the Hebrew was easily read.
offer advice to those assembled.
Three red flags were hoisted reached Italy.

Herd Returns Triumphant
In Death to Jerusalem

Council to Advise
Program Planners

MRS. JANICE MENDELSOHN

following officers for the forth-
coming year:
Mesdames Janice Mendelsohn,
president; Norman Ginsberg, Ir-
win Schubiner, Sam Katzer,
Samuel Goss, Joseph Staub, Leo
Simon, vice presidents; Ben
Gladstone, Henry Kaplan, Boris
Karasick, secretaries, and Ernest
Golumbia, treasurer.

Military Tribute to Herzl

