The Little Mermaid statue, emblem of Copenhagen and Denmark, was vandalized overnight from Wednesday to Thursday, with a large Russian flag painted on its base.
Apparent support for Moscow
The flag was painted under unknown circumstances on the stone on which stands the statue of the heroine of the storyteller Hans Christian Andersen in the harbor of Copenhagen.
The Danish police have announced that they have opened an investigation, without giving clues as to the origin of this apparent show of support for Moscow in the middle of the Ukrainian war.
“We are investigating the area to find clues,” a Copenhagen police spokesman said.
frequent damage
A few bewildered tourists were photographing the vandalized statue Thursday morning, under bright sunshine. Situated at the water’s edge, along a relatively secluded promenade, the bronze statue has been the target of all sorts of damage since its installation in 1913.
In 1964, she was beheaded for the first time, without ever having her head returned. In 1998, vandals again lopped off her head and then returned from her, before her statue was blown up in 2003.
Danish sculptor Edvard Eriksen’s work has been tagged or painted many times, most recently in 2020 with the mysterious “Racist Fish” inscription.
Source: BFM TV
