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20

Friday, September 19, 1986

Farmington Hills, Michigan

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

r

855-8800

New York (JTA) — Much of
the hotly contested collection
of rare Hebrew books and
manuscripts whose auction
at Sotheby's in 1984 was
recalled has at last found a
home in an independent, non-
profit organization created by
leading Jewish institutions in
order to have a legal entity at-
tend to the custody of this
library. The Judaica Conser-
vancy Foundation was cre-
ated for the specific purpose
of allowing the materials to
be used for the benefit of the
public, it was announced last
week.
New York State Attorney
General Robert Abrams, who
intervened two years ago to
block the sale of the disputed
Judaica until it ownership
could be properly determined,
announced that the religious
material will be turned over
to the Foundation, whose
member institutions include
the Jewish Theological Sem-
inary of America and Yeshiva
University in New York; Heb-
rew Union College in Cinricin-
nati;' the Hebrew University,
Jerusalem; Leo Baeck Insti-
tute in New York and Leo
Baeck College in London.
The materials are to be
given to the foundation under
a court order signed by
Justice Robert White of the
State Supreme Court, to • be
kept in perpetuity.
The plan was submitted in
July by the Jewish Restitu-
tion Successor Organization,
which was established after
the war by American Military
Government Law No. 59, in
order to recover masterless
property of Jews who had
been killed or Jewish institu-
tions which had been dis-
solved by the Nazis.
The disputed Judaic books
and manuscripts were con-
signed to Sotheby's for sale
more than two years ago by a
party who at the time remain-
ed anonymous. The material,
which was thought to have
been destroyed by the Nazis,
belonged to the College for
the Scientific Study of Jewish
Culture, a rabbinical semin-
ary in Berlin.
Investigations by an expert
in the field revealed the seller
to be Dr. Alexander Gutt-
mann, then professor emeri-
tus at Hebrew Union College.
Guttmann, who subsequent-
ly acknowledged his involve-
ment in the sale, claimed that
he had been given the books
to smuggle into the United
States in 1940 and that he did
so at "considerable personal
risk." The material includes a
15th-century book of philo-
sophy by Maimonides, and
13th- and 15th-century Com-
mentaries on the Pentateuch.
The books remained un-
known in the home of Gutt-
mann until April 1984, and
Sotheby's conducted the auc-

tion in June of that year,
which brought in US $1.45
million. Attorney General
Abrams subsequently sued
Sotheby's, saying that the
manuscripts were never Gutt-
mann's to sell.
Sotheby's agreed to recall
the materials in an out-of-
court settlement in July 1985
and to redistribute them to
institution where they would
be available to the public. The
monies paid for them were
placed in an escrow account,
and Guttmann received corn-
pensation of US $900,000
from a private donor who re-
mains anonymous. Gutt-
mann was dismissed from his
position at Hebrew Union
College in August 1985.
David Fishlow, a spokes-
man for Abrams, said that 17
objects from the collection
either have been returned or
are in the process of being
returned. Five pieces, how-
ever, are objects of further
negotiations, he said, as they
are not under the jurisdiction
of New York State. This
would indicate that the par-
ties who purchased them at
the Sotheby's auction do not
live in New York and might be
outside the United States,
making legal procedures more
complicated.
Not all the books sold at
the auction were ordered
returned under the settle-
ment. The money taken in
from the sale of the other
books — about US $850,000
— is to be given to the Foun-
dation, which will use it to ac-
quire additional rare Jewish
volumes.

Urge Emigration
For Jewish USSR
Cancer Victims

Washington (JTA) — Sen-
ators and cancer researchers
last week urged the Soviet
Union to let five Jewish
refusniks, all suffering from
advanced cancer, go to the
West for treatment and to be
with their families.
The five have a right to try
to get treatment not available
in the USSR and "to live in a
supportive environment in
facing the real possibilty of
death," said Dr. Gerald
Batist, a Montreal cancer
researcher who founded the
International. Cancer Pa-
tients Solidarity Committee
after examining some of the
five on a trip to the Soviet
Union Last spring."This
means being with their
families."
The press conference, which
included members of the
cancer victims' families, was
organized by Batist and Sen.
Frank Lautenberg (D.NJ) and
John Kerry (D.Mass.).

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