Hi Folks,  I am in the process of updating the fine arts rider on
my insurance.  I have always considered the valuations I had done by
a local auction house a number of years ago to be excessive (good,
I suppose, if the house burns down, but expensive when it comes to
the annual bill).

In order to get things into the "reasonable" range I have had another
valuation done by an experienced and highly-respected collector.  His
evaluations are based on what he believes one collector would consider
paying another for a similar object.  I have no complaint whatsoever
with this approach because it gives what I consider to be an excellent
starting point.

I am also aware that the insurance industry expects valuations to
reflect what would be paid to a dealer on the open market for a similar
item should this even be possible.  This would almost undoubtedly be
more expensive.

The question I have is, what is the magic multiplier to convert the
collector price to the commercial vendor price and is it the same for
all items be they automata, cylinder boxes, disc boxes, or whatever ?

Another interesting consideration for me at the moment is, of course,
the value of the US dollar.  My friend has done his evaluations in
American dollars, and with the state of the Canadian (micro) dollar
I'm beginning to wonder if I should have even started this whole mess!
(Boo-hoo!)

A 0.65 cent penny for your thoughts.

Jim Heyworth,
Sechelt, B.C., Canada
mailto:james_heyworth@sunshine.net

 [ Yeah, isn't that ghastly: the Canadian dollar is now US$0.65!  :(
 [ Now is the time to visit Canada, folks, and _buy_.  -- Robbie