Learn how to identify valuable duck decoys, spot identifying traits, and assess their market value. Famous duck decoy carvers including Ben Schmidt, Walter Ruppel, Art Chilton, Bill Goenne, and Barney Crandell are discussed.
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by Dr. Lori Verderame
Learn how to identify valuable duck decoys, spot identifying traits, and assess their market value. Famous duck decoy carvers including Ben Schmidt, Walter Ruppel, Art Chilton, Bill Goenne, and Barney Crandell are discussed.
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Dr. Lori’s online appraisals are based on actual sales records where similar pieces actually sold. Actual sales record(s) are part of the Online Appraisal document that Dr. Lori prepares. This information alerts you to locations where people have bought similar items like yours.
This is our Online Appraisal agreement. If you are interested in an Online Appraisal, you must read and agree to the appraisal terms below.
After we receive your information on the item, we will contact you at the email address that you provided concerning our acceptance to proceed and regarding payment methods.
This is our proposal for an Online Appraisal which includes actual sales records when agreed to by the client, It will constitute a binding agreement between Masterpiece Technologies Inc. (who represents Dr. Lori) and the client.
We understand that the purpose of this appraisal is to determine the fair market value of the antique, collectible, or artwork. In preparing this Online Appraisal, we will consider various factors based on our expertise including but not limited to the condition of the piece, recent sales of comparable pieces, age, provenance, and basic physical condition.
If we agree to complete the Online Appraisal based on a digital image(s), we will prepare an appraisal report to include the following information: Artist/Maker, Title, Medium/Materials, Date/Time period, Description/Identification, Condition, Dimensions/Size, Expert Evaluation, Comparable Sales Record, Current Retail Appraised Value. The report will be based on the information ascertained from research and analysis in support of the appraiser’s opinion.
The Online Appraisal Report will be emailed to you within the specified report delivery time that you selected when making payment. You may choose to receive your online appraisal report within 10 days at no additional fee or within 5 days or within 3 days for an additional fee as outlined when making payment. The report will be sent to you no later than 11:59 pm eastern time on your due date. We will email the report to you at the email address that you provided.
If you requested additional sales records after you received your Online Appraisal Report, those additional sales records will be provided to you no more than 10 days after the receipt of your payment for the additional sales records. We reserve the right to refuse to appraise any item.
This proposal is subject to the following conditions, which are expressly made a part of the agreement for appraisal services:
The appraiser has no present or contemplated future interest in the property being appraised and neither the employment of the appraiser nor the compensation paid to the appraiser is contingent upon the appraisal value of said item.
The appraiser has no bias with respect to the subject matter or parties involved in any sale (if applicable).
All conclusions and opinions concerning the appraisal that are set forth in the report were prepared by the appraiser whose name appears in the appraisal report, unless otherwise indicated. No change of any item in the report shall be made by anyone other than the appraiser and the appraiser shall have no responsibility for any unauthorized change.
Any sketch and/or photograph may show approximate dimensions and is not to be used as an exact measurement unless otherwise indicated.
The appraisal assumes that there are no hidden conditions and the appraiser assumes no responsibility for the same.
Information, estimates, and opinions furnished to the appraiser and contained in the report were obtained from sources considered reliable and believed to be true and correct. No responsibility for the accuracy of items furnished to the appraiser by other parties may be assumed by the appraiser.
Neither all, nor any part of the content of the report, or copy thereof, shall be used for any purposes by anyone but the client specified in the report without previous written consent of the appraiser.
If applicable, appraisals are subject to satisfactory completion of repairs or restoration and value conclusions are contingent upon completion of the improvements in a workmanlike manner.
The appraiser has no interest in the item appraised and the appraiser has not made any offer to buy the item appraised.
The appraisal value does not guarantee a selling price for item appraised. The value is based on research and expertise and remains the opinion of the appraiser. The Online Appraisal, additional sales records, and other opinions provided do not constitute a guarantee of sale.
In the event that an error is made in the appraisal, the liability of the appraiser and Masterpiece Technologies Inc. shall be limited to the amount of the fee paid for the appraisal. The fair market value has been defined as the price at which a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither under any compulsion to buy or sell, without the necessity of a forced sale and commensurate with the market in which the item most commonly sells and with both parties having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts agree on the sale price of the item. This appraisal reflects the appraiser’s opinion of the fair market value which has been established by rarity, comparability to similar items in the current market being offered and sold at private galleries and public auctions, published sales records, desirability, condition, and recent market trends.
Your agreement constitutes a binding agreement between Masterpiece Technologies Inc. and you, the client.
Respectfully submitted,
MASTERPIECE TECHNOLOGIES INC.
P.O. Box 188
Trumbauersville, PA 18970
I accept the proposal for an Online Appraisal and I authorize Masterpiece Technologies Inc. to proceed with this appraisal.
The client acknowledges that you have read this agreement, understand it and agree to be bound by it. The client further agrees that it is the complete and exclusive statement of agreement between you and Masterpiece Technologies Inc. concerning the Online Appraisal. Please print this agreement for your records.
The Online Appraisal is furnished to the client for your use at your own risk. The client has no remedy for damages. Specific appraisers and Masterpiece Technologies Inc. will not be held liable and the client will have no remedy for damages for any claim of any kind whatsoever concerning the client’s use of the appraisal regardless, of legal theory, and whether arising in tort or contract. In no event will Masterpiece Technologies Inc. be liable to the client for any special, indirect, incidental, or consequential damages of any kind including but not limited to compensation, reimbursement, or damages on account of the loss of present or prospective profits or for any other reason whatsoever.
This service is provided as an information and advice resource. All information provided is the opinion of the appraiser at the time the information is given to the client. Judgments and decisions made by subscribers are the responsibility of each subscriber. Information provided is used at the subscriber’s own risk. Masterpiece Technologies Inc., its affiliates, and employees are not responsible for judgments and decisions made based on the advice provided.
One person per account.
No refunds, No credits, No pausing, No upgrades.
Subscription begins at date and time of payment.*
Subscriptions end at 11:59 pm eastern time on their expiration date.
There is no limit to the number of submissions you can make each day during your subscription period.
Dr. Lori’s email responses to you about your submissions will include:
Values and related information provided are based on current market conditions at the time of the request.
Advice provided based on subscriber’s submissions derives from expert knowledge and experience.
‘Priority Ask Dr. Lori’ accounts cannot be transferred, sold, or willed.*
Keeping track of the information provided is the responsibility of the subscriber.
Each submission may only reference one object per submission form.
Response times may vary.
Masterpiece Technologies Inc., its affiliates, and employees have the right to refuse to address any submission or part thereof at their discretion.
Masterpiece Technologies Inc. is not responsible for any problems caused by internet connections or access issues related to its website.
Subscribers must be able to use email, complete a web form, and attach images.
Gift Subscription recipients agree to all above terms and conditions upon use of the ‘Priority Ask Dr. Lori’ service.
*excludes Gift Subscriptions
Updated March 30, 2021
You may use cameras on your cell phone, tablet, or personal computer’s webcam. They are all acceptable methods. Of course, any digital camera will work too.
Many devices such as cell phones, tablets, personal computers, etc. allow you to select the size of the file before you email it. Most will even prompt you to reduce the file size before you hit ‘Send’.
If you are using a personal computer, try right-clicking on the photo file with the mouse and then selecting the ‘Email’ or ‘Sent to’ feature. You will most likely be prompted to select a smaller file version of the photograph that is acceptable for our review. We do not need large files and it only slows the Online Appraisal review process. Try keeping the size of the file to 800 pixels across or under 0.5 MB in size.
You can also try opening your photo in your computer’s image editing program (“Microsoft Office Picture Manager”, “Imaging for Windows”, “Photoshop”, “PhotoDraw”, “Paint Shop Pro”, etc.). Then, use a resize, resample or rescale menu command to reduce the size of the image’s width or height (in pixels, inches, percent, etc.). Also, when saving the file as a “.jpeg”, select a smaller file size or lower quality when prompted or use an options menu during the save file process when provided. Remember too that the resolution for the images should be between 72-96 dpi, not 300 dpi.
You may take previously shot photographs or prints to many camera shops, major pharmacy and grocery stores where you can use a scanner in their stores to place the images onto a portable memory device or have them uploaded to a server where you can access them. Usually the staff at these stores are more than willing to help you with this process.
You may also consider taking a photograph of the photo using your cell phone, tablet, or digital camera.