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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 4/9/25 3:06 PM, Ashley Arimborgo
wrote:<br>
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cite="mid:CA+Vof7VAjkeGnfwZBE9v+rXtXdtibifUpnJU+8wFb5w4TUiHrw@mail.gmail.com">
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<div>Hello! </div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>I am hoping there is someone on here who can help point me
in the right direction. I have an older butterfly/entomology
display case (1940's ish) with several drawers of butterflies
and beetles in varying stages of completeness. Some have
disintegrated completely, while others still look pretty good.
I'm interested in having the case assessed for its value and
whether or not it would be worth conserving (and what that
would look like.)</div>
<div><br>
</div>
<div>This is my first foray into the entomology preservation
world, if anyone has any guidance on a good source I would
greatly appreciate it! </div>
<div><br>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote>
<p>This may sound glib, but it's accurate: it's only worth what
someone will pay for it. </p>
<p>Even the IRS assesses the value of "non-cash" charitable
donations (i.e., if you wanted to donate these specimens to a
museum as a tax write-off) based on "fair market value". At my
institution, we deal with this all the time, as we fairly often
receive donations of this sort.</p>
<p>A few things to know:</p>
<p>(1) the <b>recipient</b> of a donation cannot provide the
estimate of the value; that's a conflict of interest. For
donations worth less than $5000, you are allowed to provide the
assessment yourself (using IRS Form 8283), but only if you provide
the IRS with a <b>verifiable 3rd-party source</b> that shows what
the fair market value of similar material is. For example, if you
have a cabbage white butterfly, the fair market value is what that
species can be purchased for in a catalog. For most common
insects, the value will be around $5-7 US. You have to tell the
IRS what catalog you used, in case they decide to perform an
audit.</p>
<p>(2) There is a document produced many years ago, and still in
circulation, that fabricated values for insects based on whether
they were pinned or not, whether they were labeled or not, whether
they were identified or not, and other such criteria. This
document is NOT accepted by the IRS; they are aware of it, and
they have made it extremely clear that using the "Florida pricing
guide" is likely to trigger an audit, because it is NOT considered
"fair market value". Again, fair market value is what a specimen
of that same species <b>can be purchased for</b>. The Florida
pricing guide is based on "replacement cost", which the IRS does
not accept.<br>
</p>
<p>(3) specimens that have been damaged by carpet beetles are
generally not worth anything, unless they are something very rare
AND only slightly damaged. Generally, catalog prices refer to
undamaged specimens, and not appropriate to use for damaged
material.</p>
<p>(4) in the unlikely event that the value is estimated over $5000,
then a 3rd-party appraisal is required by law, and they cost money
to hire. Again, you don't need an appraisal for values under
$5000.<br>
</p>
<p>The odds are that the display case is worth more than the insects
inside, but it depends upon what the insects actually are, and
their condition. I speak from almost 30 years of personal
experience, and I have never seen a private collection that had
carpet beetles in it, AND would be worth buying. Collectors who
have valuable specimens generally KNOW they are valuable, take
good care of them, and don't let them get eaten. We have had many
donations over the years, hundreds if not thousands of specimens,
and I don't think that we received more than 5 or 6 specimens in
all that time whose market value would exceed 25-50 dollars. The
donors are inevitably disappointed to find out that their
"grandfather's prized collection" is only worth about 500 dollars
to the IRS, and worth <b>nothing</b> to insect collectors. Yours
may be exceptional, but you shouldn't <b>expect</b> it to be
worth very much. There are lots of spectacularly beautiful insects
that can be bought very cheaply, and many amateur collectors do
just that.<br>
</p>
<p>I hope this is helpful,<br>
</p>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Doug Yanega Dept. of Entomology Entomology Research Museum
Univ. of California, Riverside, CA 92521-0314 voicemail:951-827-8704
FaceBook: Doug Yanega (disclaimer: opinions are mine, not UCR's)
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://faculty.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html">https://faculty.ucr.edu/~heraty/yanega.html</a>
"There are some enterprises in which a careful disorderliness
is the true method" - Herman Melville, Moby Dick, Chap. 82</pre>
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