The Mermaid and The Dildo

Denmark's national symbol, the Little Mermaid sculpture perched on a rock overlooking the Copenhagen port, was splattered with green paint by vandals and adorned with a dildo. The attackers scrawled "8 marts" across the rock on which the Little Mermaid sits, marking the date in Danish of International Women's Day which was celebrated around the world on Wednesday. On Thursday, the statue was cleaned up and the sex toy removed. The Little Mermaid, one of Denmark's biggest tourist attractions, is based on the character created by Hans Christian Andersen in an 1837 fairytale. In the past 40 years, she has been decapitated twice, most recently in January 1998 after a 1990 attempt failed. She has had a bra and knickers painted on her, has been entirely covered in paint on more than one occasion, and has had her right arm cut off. For the full story - click the title Irish Art