diff --git a/library/CMakeLists.txt b/library/CMakeLists.txt
index 845f8dd07..16cf03d1a 100644
--- a/library/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/library/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -298,6 +298,9 @@ SET_TARGET_PROPERTIES(dfhack  PROPERTIES DEBUG_POSTFIX "-debug" )
 
 IF(APPLE)
     SET(SDL_LIBRARY ${CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX}/libs/SDL.framework)
+    IF(NOT EXISTS ${SDL_LIBRARY})
+        MESSAGE(FATAL_ERROR "SDL framework not found. Make sure CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX is specified and correct.")
+    ENDIF()
     SET(CXX_LIBRARY ${CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX}/libs/libstdc++.6.dylib)
     SET(ZIP_LIBRARY /usr/lib/libz.dylib)
     TARGET_LINK_LIBRARIES(dfhack ${SDL_LIBRARY})