David Battie

David Battie FRSA (born 22 October 1942) is a British retired expert on ceramics with a particular specialism in Japanese and Chinese artefacts.^[2]

After attending art school where he studied as a graphic designer, Battie joined Reader's Digest magazine for three years.^[3] In 1965, he joined the auction house Sotheby's. There he worked in the Departments of Ceramics and Oriental Works of Art and was appointed a Director in 1976. He retired from Sotheby's in 1999.

He is perhaps best known for his many television appearances on the long-running BBC television show Antiques Roadshow in which he appeared since the first series in 1977. He retired after 43 years.^[1]

Since leaving Sotheby's he has been editor of Masterpiece magazine and has written many books on pottery and porcelain. He also undertakes public speaking.^[4]

Personal life[]

In 2012, after a simple fall, Battie broke his leg whilst travelling to Norwich to give a talk. He was hospitalised for six months in Brighton and subsequently suffered an infection which was resistant to treatment by all antibiotics. He underwent upwards of eight operations. including four skin grafts of which three failed. He has estimated that, since the accident, he has taken 1,300,000 mg of the pain-killer paracetamol.^[1] Battie suffers from the genetic disorder haemochromatosis and has also developed Type 2 diabetes.^[5]

Bibliography[]

• The Price Guide to 19th and 20th Century British Pottery (1975)
• Sotheby's Encyclopedia of Porcelain (editor, 1990)
• Sotheby's Encyclopedia of Glass (coeditor, 1991)
• Readers' Digest Treasures in Your Home (consultant editor, 1992)
• Understanding 19th Century British Porcelain (1994)

References[]

External links[]

• List of published works on Bookfinder.com
• David Battie at IMDb

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