An archivist stole millions of dollars worth of rare books from the pittsburgh carnegie library. Exlibrarian and bookseller plead guilty to stealing rare texts. Gregory priore, 61, the librarys former archivist and john schulman, the owner of caliban book shop, are charged with stealing 320 books and wrecking another 16 from the pittsburgh carnegie library, according to the new york post. Carnegie library theft the new antiquarian the blog of. The geneva bible, which was published in 1615 following the release of the king james bible, was among hundreds of rare items that were stolen from the carnegie librarys collection as part of a. Library archivist, gregory priore, and antiquarian bookseller, john schulman, were arrested friday on charges including theft, criminal conspiracy, and forgery in relation to the theft of over 300 books, plates, and maps from the carnegie library of pittsburgh.
When, in 1982, police seized his storage unit in bethlehem, pa. A former librarian and a bookseller have pleaded guilty in the theft of rare books from the carnegie library of pittsburgh in a yearslong scheme. A first rough estimate is that 100150 books were stolen from. A 400yearold bible stolen from pittsburghs carnegie. Rare and valuable atlases, maps, and large plate books that show the colorful breadth of western civilization have been stolen from the rare books room of the carnegie library of pittsburgh in oakland. One by one, rare books vanished from the library the journal of george washington. Check out our overdrive for kids and overdrive for teens sites. Exlibrarian, bookseller plead in theft of rare books from.
Exlibrarian, bookseller plead in theft of rare books from carnegie. Vast theft of antiquarian books sends a shudder through a. Hoopla free movies, tv shows, audiobooks and music albums. The trail shows how thieves unloaded a carnegie library trove. Investigators on lookout for 314 items stolen from. Stolen 400yearold bible to be returned to carnegie library. The library offers you thousands of items to borrow, from books, dvds, cds, music scores and magazines to downloadable books, music, movies and more. The abaa recently learned of new developments in the criminal case regarding the carnegie library thefts.
An archivist in charge of the rare books collection, he was arrested in july on charges that he and a. Gregory priore, a 63yearold former archivist at the carnegie library of pittsburgh, pleaded guilty to one count of theft by unlawful taking. Tours at carnegie library of pittsburgh main oakland research. With global internet sales of stolen books changing the risk management equation, book dealers look for solutions to protect these antique treasures. Carnegie library theft the new antiquarian the blog of the. The carnegie library discovered hundreds of items missing from its rare book collection. Greg priore and john schulman stole and resold hundreds of rare texts over a. Valuable atlases, maps, and large plate books that show the colorful breadth of western civilization have been stolen from the rare books room of the carnegie library of pittsburgh in oakland, right. The swedish library at vitterhetsakademiens in stockholm has informed ilab on the 26th september 2018, that d uring a recent inventory project of the librarys rare numismatic book collection, located at the royal coin cabinet national museum of economy, it was discovered that several books are missing, most probably stolen the case has been reported to the police. Charged were former carnegie library archivist gregory priore, 61, and bookstore owner john schulman, 54, with theft, conspiracy, forgery, receiving stolen. Archivist steals rare books from pittsburgh carnegie library. The bible, published in 1615, was traced to the american pilgrim museum in leiden, about 45 miles 70 kilometers from amsterdam in the netherlands, said fbi agent robert jones. Find adult, teen, and childrens fiction, nonfiction, popular authors, current and backlist titles.
Abaa security reporting, preventing rare book theft. Court documents detail theft of rare maps, books, prints. Author jim hinck posted on july 20, 2018 july 20, 2018 categories booksellers, libraries, rare books, stolen books tags carnegie library 1 comment on charges filed in carnegie library theft now we have amendments to the eu cultural goods regulations. On monday, gregory priore, the former archivist of the carnegie librarys rare book room, and john schulman, owner of caliban book shop, pleaded guilty to theft and receiving stolen property for. A former librarian and a bookseller have pleaded guilty in the theft of rare books from the carnegie library of pittsburgh in a yearslong. The rare books room has been closed ever since the disclosure of the thefts, and the. Pittsburgh ap a 17th century geneva bible, one of the hundreds of rare books authorities said were stolen from a pittsburgh library as part of a 20yearlong theft scheme, is back home. While priore would sneak out the expensive items while working at the carnegie library, john schulman would try to resell them. A 400yearold bible stolen from the carnegie library of pittsburgh has been recovered and will be returned. Two charged in carnegie library theft rbms security.
Gregory priore at the carnegie library of pittsburgh in 1999. Rare items stolen from carnegie library the manuscript. Authorities friday charged former carnegie library rare books manager gregory priore and bookstore owner john schulman with theft, conspiracy and. The staff member responsible for the collection is no longer. Investigators on lookout for 314 items stolen from carnegie librarys rare books room a first edition of isaac newtons philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica was among the items taken. The fbi displayed the geneva bible, published in 1615, on thursday for the first time. According to the pittsburgh postgazette, greg priore and john schulman pleaded guilty to thef. Schulmans bookstore, caliban book shop, was a block away from the library.
Carnegie library of pittsburgh archivist accused of. In april 2017, the carnegie library of pittsburgh made a shocking discovery in the course of a routine insurance appraisal of its rare book holdings in the librarys main oakland branch. Men plead guilty in thefts of rare books from carnegie library. Carnegie library of pittsburgh hobojoneswikipedia commons on june 28, 2018, the carnegie librarys archivist for the oliver room, gregory priore, was terminated after he informed investigators that he had colluded with a local bookseller john schulman of caliban books shop to move stolen books, maps, and bookplates on to the market since 1990. Gregory priore, a former archivist at the carnegie library of pittsburgh, was originally charged. Back in april 2017, news broke that someone had stolen over 300 items from the rare books room at the main branch of the carnegie library of pittsburgh, ranging from a 17th century map of new york and new england to a first edition of adam smiths the wealth of nations. Carnegie library archivist accused of stealing rare books. According to a criminal complaint filed after his arrest on friday, gregory priore has taken razor blades to the pages of rare books for the past 20 years and walked them from the carnegie library of pittsburgh to a shop on north craig street a whimsical, crowded rare book store that smells of antique paper called caliban. On monday, gregory priore, the former archivist of the carnegie library s rare book room, and john schulman, owner of caliban book shop, pleaded guilty to theft and receiving stolen property for. The theft of 314 items includes a first edition of isaac newtons philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica from london, dated 1687. In an effort to assist in the recovery of materials missing as a result of the carnegie library theft, the abaa would like to bring to the publics attention the list of items believed stolen. Hundreds of rare books, other items still missing from carnegie library. Pittsburghs recent library theft was one of the largest.
News of the thefts was finally made public last month. Exlibrarian, bookseller plead in theft of rare books. Hundreds of rare items still missing from carnegie library. Ifcpp who stole 314 items from the carnegie library rare. A 17 th century geneva bible was one of the hundreds of rare books authorities said were stolen from a pittsburgh library as part of a 20yearlong theft scheme, is back home. Men plead guilty in carnegie library rare books theft. The swedish library at vitterhetsakademiens in stockholm has informed ilab on the 26th september 2018, that d uring a recent inventory project of the library s rare numismatic book collection, located at the royal coin cabinet national museum of economy, it was discovered that several books are missing, most probably stolen the case has been reported to the police. Gregory priore, 61, the library s former archivist and john schulman, the owner of caliban book shop, are charged with stealing 320 books and wrecking another 16 from the pittsburgh carnegie library, according to the new york post. Men plead guilty in carnegie library rare books theft pittsburgh. A library archivist and an antique bookseller are charged with stealing millions of dollars worth of rare books, illustrations, maps and photographs from a pittsburgh library over a 20year period.
1020 712 1122 1018 350 548 31 1408 1243 189 949 846 950 1571 583 343 608 1139 692 1491 1266 400 1100 1389 193 1525 636 642 832 342 1298 1377 1120 447 353 965 415 959 795 1489 457