Time.news – She died at the age of 86 Maria Kodamawidow of the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges. His remains, according to the Argentine newspaper La Nacion, were interred at the Parque Memorial del Pilar cemetery in the province of Buenos Aires, with a strictly private religious ceremony according to the wishes of the deceased. About thirty people took part in the funeral. Rose petals were sprinkled on Kodama’s coffin while the notes of Bach’s “Inventions” and “Gabriel’s oboe”, the theme of “Mission” composed by Ennio Morricone resounded. Kodama, a former student and then secretary of Borges, became his second wife in 1986, a few weeks before the writer’s death.
Maria Kodama’s lawyer, Fernando Soto, told La Nacion one “continuity” in the care of the Borgesian legacy respecting the decisions of the widow. “Maria was very discreet and we will maintain this discretion by continuing to work on Borges’ legacy, not only that of his works but also of the library and the International Foundation” which was chaired by Kodama, added the lawyer.
Since Kodama has no legitimate heirs, various conjectures have circulated in cultural circles including those that refer to an interview of Borges’s widow released to the Argentine newspaper last year, regarding the possibility that the writer’s work will be entrusted to the administration of two foreign universities. The participation of a Japanese university (Kodama’s origins are Japanese) and of an American university are being mooted.