Smiley pled not guilty to three counts of larceny and was released on bail; the case was pending at press time. The Times of London reported in October that FBI sources said Smiley owned up to stealing more than 100 maps, which the FBI is trying to locate. Smiley’s attorney, Richard A. Reeve, declined to comment.

VALUE JUDGMENT: Map collectors live in a clubby yet thriving world, where annual returns are now typically running between 8 and 10 percent. Values can soar much higher for the rarest and most desirable items. Aficionados often take an academic approach to the field, and love it for its connections to history. But a trusted dealer’s arrest last June on charges of stealing rare maps from a Yale library has roiled this tightly knit community.

It is unclear yet just how far the fallout of the Smiley scandal will extend, as map librarians and dealers review their holdings for signs of missing maps and possible links to Smiley. But some collectors see a potential benefit in the form of greater attention to provenance, and the implementation of stricter security measures.

"It’s going to rapidly speed up what should have been done a long time ago, which is better security in libraries," says Goldstein, whose collection is valued at roughly $100,000. "That’s just the modern world. You’re not going to have access to old things in libraries with no security."

Despite the scandal, antique maps inspired feverish bidding at auctions last fall. A composite atlas of 16th-century maps by Venetian cartographers fetched £1.46 million ($2.6 million) at Sotheby’s in London. Bidders knew the maps had a provenance traceable to Admiral Giovanni Andrea Doria, who died in 1606. The same atlas was sold twice before at Sotheby’s, fetching £225,000 in 1988 and £140,000 in 1980.

A room lined with wall-to-wall Audubon prints at Arader’s 72nd Street gallery provides a tranquil contrast to Arader himself. "Call San Francisco and get the four most expensive maps of Paris," he barks to an assistant during an interview. Then he puts his feet up on a table and leans back in his chair to elaborate on what is clearly one of his favorite subjects: the follies of the antique map trade. Detailing four elements of his grading system, Arader pauses for emphasis when he reaches rarity. "This is the refuge of the ignorant, lazy dealer," he says scornfully. "Rarity [is immaterial] if the map has no historical importance, is nasty-looking and in terrible condition."

Arader can afford to make himself comfortable. Revenues at his company increased 20 percent in 2005, with maps making up half the sales. His home contains $100 million worth of maps, prints and antiques–including a 1646 map of Dorset by John Speed that Arader bought when he was a 16-year-old scholarship student in England.

Passion Meets Patience
Sometimes a single map is all it takes to spark a life-long obsession. Denver-based investment banker Wesley A. Brown did not plan to embark on a consuming hobby when, at 18, he spent $40 on an 1860 map of the Colorado area published by J.H. Colton. Brown started by scouting for maps for his father, who was a collector, but soon he found he wanted the maps for himself.

Brown has since traded up to a better copy of the 1860 Colton, and developed two collections, one focused on Colorado and the other on world maps printed before 1540. Even after 33 years of collecting, he still spends time every day on his hobby, searching eBay or checking in with dealers.