Arader Gallery company policy on requests from Libraries regarding provenance. We will do whatever it takes to help Librarians retrieve stolen books. It has been a 40 year policy to cooperate in every way possible IF the damaged institution is willing to prosecute to the full extent of the law the actions of the thief and any intermediaries who may have been party in any way to any aspect of the theft.

 Below is a letter from Kate Hunter regarding the National Library of Sweden's inquiry regarding a stolen copy of the Wytfliet “Descriptionis Ptolemaicae augmentum, sive Occidentis notitia brevi commentario illustrate” owned by Arader Galleries, along with the photo attachments forwarded promptly on the gallery's behalf.

Arader Galleries will ALWAYS stand behind the policy outlined in the title of this post.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Kate Hunter
Date: Fri, Jul 8, 2011 at 11:42 AM
Subject: Wytfliet 1597
To: Gunnar Sahlin , graham arader , Caleb Kiffer
Cc: Michael Foley , Tom Quinn

Dear Mr. Sahlin, 

We all at Arader Galleries are extremely sorry to hear of your Library’s terrible loss, but also glad and relieved that the culprit has been found and is now subject to due process. 

Please find attached the copy of the original Sotheby’s catalogue entry for their sale of the 7th  May of 2003, lot 388, where Mr. Arader bought his copy of the Wytfliet “Descriptionis Ptolemaicae augmentum, sive Occidentis notitia brevi commentario illustrate”. 1597. Also a copy of the original Sotheby’s invoice confirming Mr. Arader’s purchase of the book at that sale. 

In subsequent e-mails I will send you comprehensive photographs of the book, so that you can compare them with those you have of your stolen copy. 

You may already be aware that there is currently another copy of the Wytfliet “Descriptionis Ptolemaicae augmentum, sive Occidentis notitia brevi commentario illustrate”, 1597, available here in New York at Martyan Lan www.martayanlan.com. We believe that Donald Heald and William Reese Co jointly own another copy (www.donaldheald.com / www.reeseco.com), and that there has been a copy at Sanderus in Belgium www.sanderusmaps.com. I am sure that these dealers will be willing to share information about the provenance and photographs of their copies too. 

In the meantime please do let me know the results of your comparison of your missing copy and ours, and if there is anything else that we here at Arader Galleries can do to help you find this book, or any others that were stolen from your library at the same time. 

Yours sincerely,

Kate Hunter

Kate Hunter
Rare Book Department
Arader Galleries
29 East 72nd Street
New York
NY 10021
USA
Tel: 1 212 628 3668
Fax: 1 212 879 8714

The attached verification of the copy owned by Arader Galleries:

Here is the response to Kate's letter from Gunnar Sahlin the director of the National Library of Sweden:

Dear Kate Hunter

Thank you very much for all the material you send to us. We are now going through the photographes you send to us of Wytfliets atlas and the catalogues, and coming back to you in the beginning of next week. As I wrote in the other mail to you I look forward to a close collaboration in this mattter.

I also want to repeat that I'm so impressed of your quick and informative reaction.

Best regards

Gunnar Sahlin

Here is my letter to Gunner Sahlin:

Thank you Gunnar Sahlin

For 40 years I have had to deal with competitors who get their inventory by stealing books and maps from Libraries or who encourage others to steal for them.  It has been painful losing clients to dealers in stolen books and thieves who have no cost for their inventory.  It is impossible for me to beat their prices.

It is very important to me that the thief involved with your library serve time in jail.   My bitterness from my disadvantage of the last 40 years is great.

Kate Hunter, Caleb Kiffer and all the other partners in my business look forward to working with you and hearing of your success in retrieving your stolen books. 

On a further note, you can be assured that the highly honorable team at Sothebys will also provide you with the highest levels of professionalism and integrity in helping you with the source of this atlas that they sold to me.  The company lead by Bill Ruprecht has a rare book team of David Redden, Selby Kiffer, Cathy Slowther, Richard Austin and David Goldthorpe that has always done a perfect job for me everytime.

Best wishes,

Graham Arader

Here is Gunnar Sahlin's letter to me reporting his progress.  Gunnar Sahlin is the director of the National Library of Sweden.

On Sat, Jul 9, 2011 at 8:15 AM, Gunnar Sahlin <Gunnar.Sahlin@kb.se> wrote:
Dear Graham Arader

Thank you very much for this quick reaction. I have been in mail contact with Kate Hunter, and she have sent us material about the atlas and teh catalogues. We coming back when we have treated the material.

I loook forward to a close collaboration in this matter.

Best regards

Gunnar Sahlin