We can appraise single items or collections.

Professional Service

We offer professional, written appraisals for insurance, estate, or tax purposes. In conducting this service, we act as an independent and disinterested provider of value, and we will not offer to purchase the items in question. That’s an ethical standard. In case you want a physical copy of our appraisal fees for shipping will also apply and vary. Keep in mind that an appraised value will typically be the average market price for a comparable copy of that book on the market currently. It can be slightly complicated, as the value of a rare or collectible book may fluctuate over time, so the value of a book may change from its appraised value due to the market forces that dictate the desirability and scarcity of the item. That tends to be more likely true for modern (20th century and later) publications. For this reason, we will give you a price range that will be as narrow as possible. The market price is not necessarily the amount of money that you should expect to realize for the sale of the item.

Rare book dealers often take years to find the right buyer for a scarce volume. If you are wanting to sell and aren’t interested in devoting years of your life to the process, you will probably be selling to a professional bookseller. A bookseller will necessarily need to pay you less than the amount he hopes to one day.

We also require that you inform us of any and all damages the item has sustained that aren’t visible in the pictures. From stains due to moisture to hardly visible tears. Please note that appraisals for whole libraries or collections can take more time than single items and the previously mentioned rate does not apply. Since each collection and library is unique, we will design another rate that will be fairer. For clients from Europe (the UK excluded), visitation can be arranged. Travel expense fees apply and are calculated by the traveled distance. For more information please contact us.   Notice: We do not offer authentication for signatures. If some details are omitted intentionally by the party requesting the appraisal, Sigedon LTD will not be liable for any offense committed by the party misusing the appraisal.