1st Edition

Protecting Your Collection A Handbook, Survey, & Guide for the Security of Rare Books, Manuscripts, Archives, & Works of Art

    Here is a practical volume that focuses on the major security problems for libraries, archives, and museums. Written by a respected librarian and security consultant, Protecting Your Collection provides provides a thorough review of the procedures for protecting library, art, and archival collections against losses from theft, fire, flooding, and mutilation. Author Slade Gandert includes fascinating interviews with librarians, rare book dealers, archivists, detectives, and security professionals to find out who steals from institutional collections--how they do it and why they do it. Each chapter features case studies of intriguing security leaks in the institutional system and describes their outcome. This important book is beneficial reading for library staff and administrators.

    Contents The Situation
    • Library Security: An Overview
    • Thieves
    • Book Theft
    • The Ethos of Ethics
    • The Lively Lawyer
    • The New York Public Library
    • Marking of Materials
    • The Replevin Controversy
    • The Good Doktor
    • Lost or Stolen?
    • West Point
    • Mutilation
    • The Value of Values
    • The Forger’s Considerations
    • The Investment Fallacy
    • The FBI
    • Design of Buildings
    • Guards
    • The Security Force as Peace Officers
    • Surveillance
    • Employee Dishonesty
    • Legalized Theft
    • Electronic Security
    • Things That Go Buzz in the Night
    • Insurance
    • The Survivor
    • Security and the Media
    • Doors That Should Be Closed
    • Bibliography

    Biography

    Slade Richard Gandert, Peter Gellatly