Large black swan - crown lynn second or something else?

Hi. I wonder if anyone can help me to identify a large black swan that I bought recently in a junk shop. It is certainly the crown lynn shape but it seems to be hand painted rather than glazed. Also on the bottom it has the number '117' cut into the clay by hand and various pencil writing. In one spot it says "SWAN MOULD 16-8-81" or it could be 91 and in another spot is written "black MOULD" or it could be 'slack' or 'block'.
Not sure if this photo link will work.
I could email some photos if anyone thinks they might know what it is.
Thank you so much. Alice

Welcome to the Forum alice74

Could you please email photos to the site on newzealandpottery@gmail.com and I will load them for you. It's too hard without photos and could you try to capture the base markings as best as you can. Cheers Ev

Hi Ev, I have emailed some photos. Thanks.

Here are the photos ...





My observations are that it looks like a Crown Lynn swan.
It appears to have been painted black, as there is paint flaking and brush marks around the base.
The base however doesn't look like Crown Lynn, as the base hole is unusual.
The date shows up as 91 in the photo .... perhaps someone got a mould when they closed ....?
Lets hope that others will comment as well.

Thanks for the feedback Ev.
It would be nice to hear comments from anyone else as well

The base really bothers me alice ....
Check out this auction that sold on Trademe and compare the bases -
http://www.trademe.co.nz/pottery-glass/porcelain-pottery/crown-lynn/other/auction-494599063.htm
Your swan doesn't have a footring or any glaze on the base and all of the Crown Lynn swans do. It's a puzzler!

I have also just bought a white one with sage interior glaze with a strange m on the footer. I’m going to put it with my unglazed small one

I think I may have found a similar swan in a different colour to you mine also has 117 etched in the base, it also has a flat base. The unusual thing is I live in Perth Western Australia and found it in an opshop, so someone must have brought it across a long time ago.

I've reloaded the photos that alice sent to the site Abrahams.
See above.

I will add my images under this one to make it easy to compare. The bottom of mine only has the etched number. The shapes appear very similar.

Thanks and definitely not made by Crown Lynn.
There were some potteries in Australia that copied the Sylvac swan as Crown Lynn did.
Pates Pottery was one, but I know that there were others.
I wouldn't call it a fake, but I would call it a reproduction, or replica as they are all the same shape until you get to the base.

That makes so much more sense. Thank you, I will have a look into Australian pottery places.