Reading a condition report

Common terms

A report describes what is present, not what is acceptable. These distinctions recur:

• Restoration: intervention intended to return earlier appearance
• Repair: structural work, not necessarily sympathetic
• Reweave: replaced pile or foundation in a defined area
• Later addition: material added after original manufacture
• Stabilised: further loss arrested without replacement

What it means for value

Disclosed, well-executed restoration is normal in older objects. Undisclosed restoration is the problem, because it changes what a buyer thinks they are paying for.