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Appraising art/artifact collections



Title: Appraising art/artifact collections

Besides the reply I received from Ron & Isabel Lieberman, which was posted to the list, I also received one response from an archivist who just undertook such a project last year.  She began by consulting the websites for the American Society of Appraisers and the Appraisers Association of America.  She selected six appraisers who specialized in the types of objects in her museum and sent them a general letter explaining the project.  Of the three who replied, only one was available to do the appraisal.  The institution had an inventory, but the appraiser was prepared to develop her own inventory and didn't often work from the one already prepared.  She appraised each object, but her main concern was with condition and not with the significance of the object to the institution.  The appraiser worked from her notes and checked for the replacement value of items.  Since the appraisal was for the purpose of insurance, the insurance company is only interested in replacement value or what a similar object would cost today.

The survey took about three to four months, but this would vary with the size of the collection.  The appraised value was entered into a database, and a report created for the insurance company listing each object and its value.

Thank you both again for your great advice.  At least I now know what I have to do!

Rebecca Fitzgerald, CA
Mt. St. Mary's Archives & Dept. of Special Collections
Mt. St. Mary's College & Seminary
Emmitsburg, MD 21727
301/447-5397
301/447-6868 (fax)
rfitzger@msmary.edu
http://www.msmary.edu/studentsandstaff/library/archives.htm