Appraisals

"I once saw an individual sell a fine Alexandrite gemstone for $3000 because an ‘expert’ told him it was synthetic. It later sold for $60,000."

Stan Shelley
Owner, Shelley's Jewelry

After 39 years in business, our advice is to have your jewelry evaluated by a trained gemologist with a degree from the GIA. A qualified appraisal jeweler will have an additional degree in appraising from the ISA, the International Society of Appraisers.

Avoid verbal appraisals from your jeweler, as they can be very misleading. A trained gemologist and appraiser would never give a verbal estimate of quality, identification, or value.

There are two kind of appraisals:

Insurance Appraisal

An Insurance Appraisal tells the insurance company how much it would cost them to replace your jewelry. Basically, the insurance company wants us to tell them how much a new one sells today. It does not tell you what you should expect to get for it.

Fair Market Appraisal

This is the appraisal you need for knowing how much to sell a piece of jewelry for, or if you want to determine tax donation value.