Can you identify this breed of dog......?

[My Angel Pie]

looks identical in size, coat and tail type like a maltese, but jet black? thanks

[Clanad]

According to
http://www.foxstonemaltese.com/maltese_breed_h istory.htm
"The earliest known Maltese on record in the United States was born in 1873. He was entered at Westminster in 1879 and was also the first colored Maltese shown here. Entered as a "Maltese Skye Terrier," he was described as being white with black ears.

There was great interest in colored Maltese in the United States. Some crossbreeding was done here, as well as in England. One such recorded crossbreeding used a white Maltese and a black Pomeranian. The resultant litter produced black Maltese, identical to the white variety.

Here's some pictures, by the way...
http://www.5stardog.com/pictures-of-dogs-skye- terrier.asp

Could be your described dog...

[My Angel Pie]

thanks Clanad, i saw the dog again and asked the owner, silly me, it was a black ******, never seen a pure black one, really cute, but not as cute as the white maltese!