The sculpture of the Little Mermaid in the port of Copenhagen was installed on August 23, 1913. Since then, it has become a symbol of Copenhagen and all of Denmark. It was made at the request of Carl Jacobsen, son of Carlsberg brewery owner, who was impressed by the ballet "the Little Mermaid", based on a fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen.
The Little Mermaid sculpture is located in the Park area of the port of Copenhagen. Nearby you can see the Gefion fountain, take a walk in Churchill Park, as well as along the bastions of the Castellet fortress. The size of the Little Mermaid is small, only 1.25 meters. The figure of the Little Mermaid, by the sculptor Edward Erickson, sits on a granite stone and looks out to sea.
The Little Mermaid is a monument to love. In Anderson`s story, she was the daughter of Neptune. When mermaids reached the age of 15, they were allowed to surface to see the world. Once the little mermaid was sitting on the coastal rocks and saw a beautiful Prince on the ship. She fell in love with him, but because of the storm, the ship began to sink, and the Prince could be killed. The little mermaid saved him.
She wanted to be always with the Prince and got a potion from her grandmother that will allow her to have human legs and get an immortal soul. But after drinking the potion, she could only get it if the Prince loved her. Otherwise, she will turn into sea foam. Alas, but circumstances prevented this love, and she turned into sea foam, and then became the Daughter of the Air. The other daughters told her that she would receive an immortal soul through her deeds.
The sculpture of the Little Mermaid eventually became very famous all over the world. Copies of it have appeared in many cities and on different continents. So the Little Mermaid can be seen in Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, Tokyo, Sydney and other cities. In Denmark, the veneration of their symbol has taken on a national scale. Every year, the birthday of the Little Mermaid is celebrated as a public holiday.
