Miller’s Antiques Encyclopedia

Your public library should have a few good general reference books on antiques so you can look up dates, styles, marks, unusual names, and even values. The new edition of Miller’s Antiques Encyclopedia, edited by Judith Miller (Miller’s/Mitchell Beazley, London, $70, c2003, 560 pages) would be a good addition to a home library as well. It is a large, hardcover, color-illustrated book filled with the facts you need if you are interested in European antiques. There’s limited information on American antiques and on decorative wares of the first half of the 20th century. It is an authoritative book written by experts who sometimes use technical terms that require a glance at the book’s extensive glossary. An important book for a serious researcher.