2024-05-02 15:17:08
From 2022, when the invasion of Ukraine began
170 old books by Russian authors worth 3.7 billion stolen
Evaluation of “A book more precious than diamonds”
There is also the possibility of simple theft amid rumors of Russian intervention.
“Pushkin’s old books, more precious than diamonds, are disappearing.” (Warsaw University Library, Poland)
There has been a series of mysterious thefts of at least 170 old books by Russian writers, including the first edition of Aleksandr Pushkin’s (1799-1837) poetry collection, from various libraries in Europe since early 2022. Coincidentally, the incident took place after Russia invaded Ukraine in February of that year, raising suspicions of organized Russian involvement.
The German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) reported on the 30th of last month (local time), citing Europol, the European police organization, that “more than 170 books by Russian authors have disappeared from libraries scattered across at least six countries.” Most of the stolen books were rare and old books, and were reportedly worth at least 2.5 million euros (about 3.7 billion won) in monetary terms.
According to SZ, 79 books disappeared from the library of Warsaw University in Poland last year. Books by Pushkin and Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852) were also stolen from libraries in Latvia and Estonia. Libraries in Western European countries such as France, Switzerland, and Germany also lost books by Russian authors. Europol, which has been tracking theft cases, arrested four thieves who were trying to steal Russian books on the 24th of last month. Some have raised the possibility that the Russian government or related organizations are behind this, based on the fact that the Russian military is using it for cultural propaganda, such as putting up a large portrait of Pushkin in occupied Ukraine. Hieronym Grala, a historian at the University of Warsaw, argued that “the loss of old books occurred at an organized level,” and that “it seems clear that the Russian center was involved.”
There is a high possibility that it is simply a crime aimed at money. In fact, it is known that some of the stolen old books turned up at auction markets in Moscow and St. Petersburg. One of these volumes is said to have been sold for 35,000 euros. Aglé Acetsova, head of the Russian library at the University of Paris Library of Languages and Civilizations, said, “Russian old books are very popular with collectors, so they are not easy to obtain,” and added, “It is highly likely that they were theft by a criminal organization.”
Cairo = Correspondent Kim Ki-yoon [email protected]
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2024-05-02 15:17:08