A Bristol book dealer who stole and sold rare books worth more than £230,000 from one of the world's richest families has been jailed for 28 months.

The Bristol Post revealed on Wednesday that David Slade, aged 59, from Horfield, had admitted taking 68 books from Sir Evelyn de Rothschild over seven years.

Slade, who used to work for George's bookshop in Park Street which later became Blackwell's, was hired by the Rothschilds in 2001 to catalogue the family book collection.

The court heard debt problems led the married father-of-two, whose home is a modest terraced house in Boston Road, Horfield, and does not have a car, to turn to crime.

Sentencing him later on Wednesday, Judge Christopher Tyrer said: "You indulged in a significant plundering of Sir Evelyn's book collection over a long period of time and your actions were in flagrant breach of the employment you were there to undertake.

"It was debt not greed which motivated you."

Among the rare books stolen was Louis Dupre's Voyage a Athens et a Constantinople, which was worth £33,000; Chaucer's Troylus and Cressida worth £15,000; and a signed first edition of T.E. Lawrence's Seven Pillars of Wisdom worth £22,000 Judge Tyrer made a recovery order for all the unsold books from the auctions and those found in Slade's house to be returned.

He also ordered the stolen T.E. Lawrence book be returned to the Rothschild family by the person who bought it at auction.

He told Slade his actions after being employed to catalogue the books were a "grave lapse" from his normal high standards.

The court heard the dealer, who has sold books around the world since he was 17, visited Sir Evelyn's Ascott House estate near Wing, Buckinghamshire, up to three times a week from 2001.

He admitted removing books from the family library which he then sold at auction.

He was eventually caught after an audit showed some of the valuable collection was missing.

Prosecuting, Robert Spencer-Bernard said the thefts represented a ''gross breach of trust'' by Slade during his employment between 2001 and 2005.

He said: ''It was first thought the cataloguing would take between one-and-a-half and two years but suspicions arose because it was taking so long."

Experts at Dominic Winter's Auctioneers in Cirencester became suspicious when, working as a freelance buyer and seller, Slade started selling a range of rare books.

Police raided Slade's home in April last year and found books and invoices for publications which had been reported stolen by Sir Evelyn.

He and wife Lady de Rothschild are worth more than £500 million and were ranked the 150 wealthiest couple in last year's Sunday Times Rich List.

Gregory Bull QC, defending Slade, said he was now a "ruined man" who faced bankruptcy and was likely to lose £100,000 worth of assets.

He said: "David Slade is nearing his 60th birthday and is a ruined man and he knows it.

"He faces losing at least £100,000 of his assets and it is of deepest shame to him and his family that he is here.

"At a time when most men his age are looking forward to retirement he knows he faces financial ruin and prison."

Neighbours expressed shock at Slade's crimes.

Robyn Lugg, 20, a law student who lives in the same road as Slade and his wife, said: "They seem like really nice people. I'm really shocked to hear he stole large amounts of money.

"You wouldn't know it. They don't seem very extravagant.

"Sometimes they are out in the back doing gardening and they always smile and say 'hello'. Otherwise they keep themselves to themselves."

Maria Vasiliev, 20, another student neighbour, said: "They were really very nice to us.

"Sometimes they take our bins out for us on bin day."

Another neighbour who did not wish to be named said: "They don't look like the types who would steal.

"I don't think they even have a car. The wife always has lifts from someone to take her shopping.

"It's a very quiet street and people don't talk much so didn't have a clue what had happened."