Cabinet secrets

From the jacket "Alistair Sampson's knowledge and experience as a collector and a dealer are leavened by an irreverence which gives him no hesitation in exposing the cant, hypocrisy and pomposity of both the antique trade and its customers in this forthright and witty book.

"Whether writing about Leeds creamware, English Delft, philately or the fashion for stripped pine, whether discoursing on the evils of the Ring or the disadvantages of business partnership, advising on where to go for expert opinion and valuation, or offering lessons in how not to be fazed by supercilious salesmen, Alistair Sampson is as entertaining as he is informative. He has the ability to communicate the excitement of the auction room, the thrill of acquisition, and the pleasure to be taken in first-rate craftsmanship and beauty.

"No collector should venture near an antique shop without the protection afforded by Cabinet Secrets. Forewarned is forearmed. Unforewarned, it could cost you and arm and a leg.

"Alistair Sampson, who has for some time been on the Council of the British Antique Dealers Association and on the Executive of the Grosvenor House Antiques Fair, is a barrister, writer and leading antique dealer. He is an expert on English pottery, early English needlework and metalware, particularly brass, and fine English furniture, mainly 17th-century. He has also made a study of English naive pictures.

"Once the tame poet of Cliff Mitchelmore's 'Tonight' programme, he has published four books of light verse and short stories, and joined Punch magazine in 1984 to contribute a regular column on 'Collecting'."

Drawings by Nick Baker.