Report: “Almost 5,000 Valuable Items Stolen From Florida State University Library Comic Collection”

From WCTV:

Florida State University says its police department is investigating after nearly 5,000 rare items were taken from a special collection at Strozier Library. According to an FSU spokesperson, 4,996 items went missing from the Robert M. Ervin Jr. Collection between March 17, 2020, and Feb. 10, 2021.

The collection consists of comic books and serials about superheroes, science fiction, fantasy and horror, including rare Marvel and DC comics.

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Over 1,200 serial titles are represented, predominantly from the 1950s through the 1970s. Publications include those by Marvel Comics, DC Comics, underground publishers, foreign language titles and pulp magazines.

According to a listing, the collection includes:

• Avengers #068 Publisher: Marvel Comic Group
• Avengers #069 Publisher: Marvel Comic Group
• Avengers #070 Publisher: Marvel Comic Group
• Avengers #071 Publisher: Marvel Comic Group
• Avengers #072 Publisher: Marvel Comic Group
• 80 Pg. Giant – Batman (Silver Anniversary Issue) #5 Publisher: National Periodical Publications
• 80 Pg. Giant – Batman #12 Publisher: National Periodical Publications
• 80 Pg. Giant – Jimmy Olsen #13 Publisher: National Periodical Publications
• 80 Pg. Giant – Jimmy Olsen #2 Publisher: National Periodical Publications
• 80 Pg. Giant – Lois Lane #14 Publisher: National Periodical Publications

It also includes multiple Big Little Books, “petite texts” containing stories and illustrations involving popular characters, such as the Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, and Gene Autry, according to Illuminations, an FSU Special Collections blog.

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“We really want to get these items back. We’re disclosing this information now with the hope that it produces some credible leads that can help us recover these valuable materials for research and teaching purposes,” FSU Dean of University Libraries Gale Etschmaier said in an email.

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See Also: Complete List of Stolen Items (via ABAA)

Filed under: Academic Libraries, Archives and Special Collections, Companies (Publishers/Vendors), Gale, Libraries, News, Publishing