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DECLARED LOST Recovering Stolen Books at the Boston Public Library

SAFESaving Antiquities for Everyone, the not-for-profit, hosts an upcoming panel of distinguished speakers to discuss the growing problem of the illicit rare book trade.



On Saturday, October 29, at 10 AM in the Rabb Lecture Hall of the Boston Public Library join a panel of lawyers, scholars, librarians and book dealers who will discuss issues related to stolen rare books. The discussion will cover topics such as who bears the responsibility of policing the world of rare books, and what does the growing problem of stolen rare books tell us about the economics of our cultural heritage.



Though the black market for rare books has existed as long as books have been considered rare and valuable, evidence and trends suggest the problem is a growing issue that threatens our ability to protect and learn from the precious and finite books of another time.



According to INTERPOL, detectives in 181 countries are currently seeking to recover nearly 1700 stolen or missing rare books. Such precious loot includes a first edition Tres Epistolae de Maculis Solaribus by Galileo Galilei, published in 1612, and a 1538 volume of Aesop s Fables. Many of the stolen books are valued at millions of dollars; for instance, in 2001 a 1623 first folio of Shakespeare s works worth over $2 million was stolen from the Durham University library.



The Guardian recently reported that lay people, wary of the temperamental nature of the stock market, have begun purchasing rare books for reliable investments. This broadening market for rare books has caused prices to soar, and thieves have capitalized on the lucrative trade. All of this means precious written historical artifacts are at risk, and many printed works of art are already lost to the black market.



The panel will include experts on the issue. Nicholas Basbanes, author of A Gentle Madness and the forthcoming Every Book its Reader: The Power of the Printed Word to Stir the World, will recount the story of Stephen Blumberg, who stole $20 million worth books from more than 300 libraries.



Ken Sanders, former chair of the security committee of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA) and owner of Ken Sanders Rare Books in Salt Lake City, who has aided in capturing several book thieves and exposing frauds and forgeries, will discuss how using the internet can expose theft in the illicit rare book trade.



Jeff Spurr, an Islamic and Middle East Specialist at Harvard University s Fine Arts Library will tell the story of Jose Torres, who stole about $1.5 million worth of books and prints from Harvard s libraries.



David Szewczyk, a current co-chair of the security committee of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America (ABAA), and a partner in the Philadelphia Rare Books & Manuscripts Company, will detail his involvement in two cases where stolen books were identified and recovered.



Michael Thompson, a Chicago attorney who specializes in cultural property law, will discuss the recovery of Holocaust-era displaced books.



SAFE member Matthew Battles will moderate the panel. He is the author of Library: An Unquiet History and is the coordinating editor of the Harvard Library Bulletin.



After the lecture guests are invited to a special tour of the Department of Rare Books and Manuscripts at the Boston Public Library led by Earle Havens, and will be allowed to view a collection of recovered books including the personal library of John Adams, and the library of Thomas Prince. The collections, two of the earliest and largest private library collections in America, suffered losses and thefts before coming to the library.



Attendance is free, and pre-registration for the tour is required.

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