Pages Stolen from Rare Books at University of Kansas
Six rare books have been vandalized in recent weeks at the University of Kansas’s Watson Library in Lawrence; the library estimates the cost of the loss at $5,000. Plates, maps, and other artwork were removed from the volumes, which date back as far as the early 1800s.
An 1887 book on Julius Caesar and a volume from the East Asian collection were found in a third-floor rest room May 28 with pages missing. A subsequent search discovered that plates had been removed from two volumes of a rare set of 19th-century German encyclopedias and from Relevés et restaurations, a 1902 folio book on the archaeology of the ancient Greek site of Delphi.
To prevent further losses, “Librarians are taking the opportunity to review the titles in Watson . . . to determine if Watson is the best place to hold them,” said library Director of Communications and Advancement Rebecca Smith. The university’s most valuable books are kept under restricted access in the Spencer Research Library, which houses 400,000 volumes, and an annex containing 800,000 volumes.
Smith declined to comment on the status of the investigation other than to confirm that the university police are the only agency currently involved, and that they are also working with the library to assess current security measures.
—Gordon Flagg, American Libraries Online
Posted on June 17, 2009.