NEWPORT, Vt. (AP) – A stuffed bald eagle that could be 100 years old has been stolen from its display case at the Goodrich Memorial Library.

The bird was part of an exhibit of rare and antique stuffed animals on display on the second story of the library, which has been closed for renovations.

Bald eagles are protected by federal law and cannot be hunted or mounted. That makes this antique so rare that its value cannot be determined, said Newport Police Patrolman John Vining.

“It’s irreplaceable,” Library Trustee Paul Monette said Wednesday.

Library officials reported the theft Wednesday, though the bird could have been stolen sometime over the past several months while the library has been closed for extensive renovations, Monette and Vining said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the city police department at 802-334-6733.

The bird was one of many in the display case, behind glass to protect onlookers from the mercury used at the time the animals were stuffed as a preservative.

The animals were presented to the library in the 1920s from the collection of David W. Hildreth, a newspaperman who had hundreds of stuffed and mounted animals in his collection, according to library records.

The animal display is in original condition. Monette said the display must be cleaned and treated carefully because of the mercury present. Eventually, library trustees hope to properly display the remaining animals, he said.

The library has been undergoing extensive renovations and restoration, with long-closed rooms upstairs opened up and returned to their century-old original condition.

AP-ES-03-24-05 1437EST