Off the west coast of Esterillos Oeste in Costa Rica you will find this mermaid statue (La Sirena) of a mermaid which local sources will tell you was actually seen. map
In the late 1960s, a fisherman named Fernando, from Esterillos Oeste, claimed to have seen a mermaid in the surf while he was fishing on shore. He was so moved by the experience that he arranged for a 1-ton 12' tall bronze mermaid statue to be made and placed in 1970 in the place where he saw her. She sits atop a concrete stand and is battered by the Pacific Ocean twice a day. At high tide this creates the illusion that she is coming out of the sea.
In mid 2023, after 53 years at sea, La Sirena was battered by a strong tropical storm and fell from her stand onto the rocks below. Locals and admirers raised the funds to have her lifted out of the water and brought to shore and then back to the studio in San Jose (Costa Rica) where she was made. The sculptor - Don Abilio Valverde - who is now in his mid-80s arranged for the needed repairs, and La Sirena was brought back and re-installed on her pedestal off the coast of Esterillos Oeste again.
More photos of the mermaid are needed, especially photos after the restoration.
References:
● https://thecostaricanews.com
● Book - The Mermaid of Esterillos Oeste
