The fundamental theory of Archival Science is Archival Appraisal Theory (AAT), and it has been undergoing substantial changes since 1990s. This paper uses Scientometric research methods and the related Knowledge-Mapping tool to analyze the citations between AAT journal articles and those from other disciplines. The objective is to identify the hot spots of AAT research and to summarize its developments from 1990 to 2017. We also make use of the results to extrapolate the developmental trends of AAT in the past thirty years from a macroscopic viewpoint. Our discoveries can be used by various research administrations as well as academic institutions to augment and fine-tune Archival Scienceresearch in order to meet the emerging demands in appraising modern archival works.