diff --git a/src/errors.cpp b/src/errors.cpp
index 39777e98..34ea22f4 100644
--- a/src/errors.cpp
+++ b/src/errors.cpp
@@ -41,6 +41,10 @@ BOOST_PYTHON_DECL bool handle_exception_impl(function0<void> f)
     {
         PyErr_SetString(PyExc_IndexError, x.what());
     }
+    catch(const std::invalid_argument& x)
+    {
+        PyErr_SetString(PyExc_ValueError, x.what());
+    }
     catch(const std::exception& x)
     {
         PyErr_SetString(PyExc_RuntimeError, x.what());