Here's what your appraisal form could say:
Supporting Documentation
Name of Painting: Houses of Parliament, London
Circa Date: 1905; Oil on canvas
Art Style: Impressionism
Damage: Oil in upper left corner is cracking, may be slightly water damaged
Restoration: None. Subjected to black light.
Fair Market Value: In my opinion, the Houses of Parliament, London is worth $2.5 million based on recent auction records and my research.
At this point, you would go into great detail about how the findings of your research justify the appraisal. Your writing skills will be invaluable during this process.
Art appraiser J. Darragh M. Elliot explains the documentation that he provides with each appraisal. "I write what I refer to as a master appraisal and that outlines basically all the terms and conditions under which the work's being appraised," he says.
"It states, for example, if it's copywritten, who can use the appraisal, what the purpose for the appraisal is for....It's very in depth so that, when somebody looks at it, I've covered all the bases. And it's a lot of work!"