Perhaps, but maybe not the full $250. When you inherit property, the value of the inherited property, in this case an antique desk, is the fair market value as of the date of the decedent's death. This is what is called a "stepped up" basis. In other words, the value of the antique desk on the date of the decedent's death is your basis or cost. When you sell inherited property for an amount greater than its cost, you have a gain and need to report that gain. Thus, if the FMV of the desk you inherited was $0, then you would report the $250 you received.
If you sold the desk for less than what it's worth, you don't get to deduct that loss. The exception would be if the desk was investment property or business property. In that case, selling the desk at a loss would be a deductible loss. But when it's just personal property, losses are not deductible, but gains are reported as capital gain income.
@beilime
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