1788 New York Daily Advertiser
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GUEST:
I believe the newspaper came from my family, and I want to know, (a) if it's real, and (b) if it has any value and how, most importantly, would I preserve it if it has some value?
APPRAISER:
This is from Tuesday, July 22, 1788. New York paper, the date's right up here. And it's The Daily Advertiser. It's wonderful rag paper, you don't have any problem with it. This is definitely an original. Almost the whole front is advertising. But what I particularly liked about this paper, this is the Constitution. What was happening then was the New York Assembly was voting whether to accept the U.S. Constitution. So this is an account of that, and imagine, that's on the second page. The New York Assembly accepted and passed the Constitution. They were the 11th state to accept it, but they were a very, very important state, because if New York had turned down the Constitution, it might never have passed. We can see that there are some issues...
GUEST:
Right.
APPRAISER:
With some holes in them, and that does affect the value. One of the fortunate parts is, it doesn't really affect much of the text. There is one spot here.
GUEST:
Okay.
APPRAISER:
But most of the text is intact. You can get these papers in almost perfect condition, and one of the reasons you can get them like that is many of them sat in old libraries. They bound them by years, so they do show up in good shape. Now, I noticed when you first brought this in today, you had it closed in the...
GUEST:
In an old magazine.
APPRAISER:
You had it closed up in an old magazine. That actually isn't the worst thing in the world. It could be restored. To do it right, it might even cost $500, $1,000. Quite honestly, I wouldn't touch it. In a retail shop, retail value is, in this condition, $2,500, $3,500, in that range. If it was in absolutely perfect shape, we might double that.
GUEST:
Wow. Well, you know, the part I like is typically, the things in my family were passed down from oldest son to oldest son, but my father changed, and since I'm the oldest child, I got this, so I'm thrilled.
Appraisal Details
Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.
Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."
Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.
Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.
Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.
Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.
Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.
