A MUSEUMS trust has been awarded almost £100,000 to display its world-class collection of ceramics in a major exhibition.

Select pieces from a collection of thousands of pots will feature in the display, which will be open to the public at three museums in Yorkshire in 2005.

The material, from York Castle Museum, the Yorkshire Museum and York Art Gallery includes items from the W. A. Ismay Collection, widely considered to be the most important collection of British post-war studio pottery.

York Museums Trust will use its £96,550 award from the Esme Fairbairn Foundation to recruit a specialist in ceramics, responsible for the cataloguing of the W. A. Ismay collection and managing the exhibitions and public programme of events.

Janet Barnes, chief executive of the trust, said: "The chance to show the breadth and richness of all of our ceramic collections will put York on the map with regard to ceramics."

The exhibition will be staged at York Art Gallery, Scarborough Art Gallery and Wakefield Art Gallery.