Swans have represented beauty, romance and elegance for a very long time. Earlier representations of river birds, (such as this Romano-British Nene Valley colour coated ware) may not have captured them in their regal integrity but it does indicate a common fascination with putting them on pots. Whether it’s Emma Bridgewater or Roman pottery imported from Peterborough to Lincolnshire in the 3rd to 4th centuries.

Swan’s a-Swimming across this pot

Feature image recreated from Xavier Romero-Frias https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:XRF_12days.jpg under CC license