Widener Book Heist Increases Security

Original copies of historic French documents from the Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods have been stolen from the Widener Library stacks-a loss estimated at $10,000.

Beth Brainard, director of communications for Harvard College Library, confirmed that the theft involved 18 books containing 46 items in total.

A student patron brought the situation to light about a week and a half ago, bringing empty covers from which pages had been torn to the circulation desk.

After the library conducted an inventory-a lengthy process because of Widener's extensive 3.5 million-volume collection-library officials contacted the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD).

Many of the pamphlets, journals and books in Widener's collection were bound together in larger volumes because of their individual fragility. Also included in the larger bound volumes were obituaries and Napoleonic proclamations.

HUPD is currently investigating the theft. The University has also contacted local, state and national authorities, according to Brainard. The investigation is still in the early stages.

"We've worked with [the FBI] in the past on missing artwork and artifacts," said Peggy McNamara, a spokesperson for HUPD.

Security at Widener is already very good, McNamara said. But since the theft's discovery, the library has increased security with more HUPD personnel throughout the facility-particularly in the stacks, Brainard said.

Widener is undergoing extensive renovations to enhance the library's ability to preserve its collections. The renovated stacks will include increased security measures-for example, card swipers. The completion date for the renovations is spring 2002.

"A lot of measures simply can't be sped up simply because of construction, but [in light of this theft] what we can speed up, we will," Brainard said.

Brainard said another French revolutionary piece was discovered missing from Hilles Library on Friday. This information could not be confirmed by HUPD.