Book excerpt: The dazzling ceramics of Clarice Cliff and of the Wilkinson family in the north of England have become one of the great collectables from the 20th century. Ever since the exuberant colours and bold shapes of Clarice Cliff's classic Art Deco pieces first caught the imagination of collectors, auction prices have moved inexorably ever upwards. Now, after many years of research, both in the Wilkinson archives and through the oral testimonies of surviving employees, Greg Slater has produced the first comprehensive and dazzling survey of the work of Clarice Cliff and her largely uncredited colleagues at the Wilkinson Pottery from the 1920s to the 1950s. In a massive work of reference, the origin, name, designer, date and decoration method of all the significant pieces are easily identified. Accessible through three indexes - pattern name, number and backstamp - the book is organized by Pattern and also by Shape (an instant identifier for ceramics without a backstamp).