The remains of Professor Boris Schatz, noted Jewish sculptor and founder of the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts in Palestine, are enroute to Palestine today, aboard the steamer Excalibur which sailed yesterday.
The body of the Palestine art pioneer was shipped for interment in Palestine with whose modern development he is closely linked, following public services on Monday afternoon at the Riverside Memorial Chapel, under the auspices of the Zionist Organization of America.
Seven hundred Jews, including representatives of scores of New York and national Jewish organizations, participated in the services.
Rabbi I. H. Levinthal, of the Brooklyn Jewish Center conducted the religious services. Eulogies were delivered by Morris Rothenberg, President of the Zionist Organization of America, who was the principal speaker; Louis Lipsky, National Chairman of the American Palestine Campaign; Abraham Goldberg, speaking for the Histadruth Ivrith; Dr. Chaim Greenberg, representing the Poale Zion and David Pinski, Jewish author.
After the services, a police escort accompanied the funeral procession to the Holland Tunnel enroute to Jersey City. The cortege was met by a motorcycle escort of the Jersey City police department which led the way to the steamer pier in Jersey City.
Mr. Rothenberg described the late Professor Schatz as “an extraordinary man, a great Jew, a distinguished artist, and a creative spirit. Boris Schatz was one of the pioneers of the modern Jewish Renascence, one of the first champions of and spokesmen for political Zionism.”
Professor Schatz died in Denver Colorado, in March following an operation. The body was embalmed and held in a vault in Denver pending completion of arrangements for the shipment of his body for interment in Palestine in accordance with his own wishes and that of his family.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
