diff --git a/Lib/shelve.py b/Lib/shelve.py
index 059d7f3a00d..5e680bc3c68 100644
--- a/Lib/shelve.py
+++ b/Lib/shelve.py
@@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ def close(self):
         self.sync()
         try:
             self.dict.close()
-        except:
+        except AttributeError:
             pass
         self.dict = 0