— Dr. Ricardo Subirana y Lobo Wolf, founder of the Wolf Fund, died here yesterday at the age of 93. He bequeathed his body to science.
For years the founder of the $10 million fund which now bears his name was unknown, at his own request. He established the fund in 1971 but it was only in 1975, after suitable legislation as to its management, that it became known as the Wolf Prize Fund and his identity was disclosed. Five prizes are awarded annually to distinguished scientists from all over the world for their contribution to research and humanity.
Wolf was born in Hanover, Germany to a well-known Jewish family. He left for Cuba before World War II and in 1961 he was sent to Israel as Cuba’s first minister. He remained in that post until 1973 when Cuba broke off diplomatic relations with Israel.
A personal friend of Premier Fidel Castro, Wolf was permitted to remain in the magnificent seashore villa (in Herzliya) he had built at his own expense to house the Cuban legation. In addition to funding the Wolf Prize Foundation, he also awarded about 80 full scholarships to needy and deserving students at Israeli universities.
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.
