On the banks of Flat River in Greenville Michigan sits a near-replica of The Little Mermaid statue in Denmark. map
The face of the statue is quite drastically different, and very distinct. Nonetheless, the Flat River mermaid became the center of an international controversy concerning the copyrights of the original sculptor, Edvard Eriksen.
The City of Greenville was sued by Eriksen’s heirs for copyright infringement in 2009, 15 years after the flat River mermaid was sculpted by David Willison. The lawsuit was later dropped.
At 30 inches, it is a little over half the size of the Danish statue.
The inscription near the statue reads:
The Little Mermaid
In one of Hans Christian Andersen’s best known fairy tales, a mermaid must choose between her love for a prince and life under the sea. This replica of the Edvard Eriksen statue that graces the harbor in Copenhagen, Denmark, was crafted by artist Steve Willison and dedicated on August 18, 1994, by the Danish Festival Board in honor of this area’s proud Danish heritage.
This is one of the many copies of Edvard Eriksen's original mermaid statue placed in Copenhagen harbor in 1913.
These are the copies of this statue that I am aware of:
- Brazil, Brasilia, Navy HQ
- China, Shenzhen, Window of the World
- Denmark, Copenhagen, Carlsberg Breweries
- Denmark, Copenhagen, Tivoli Gardens
- Japan, Yokohama
- Romania, Pietra Neamt
- South Korea, Seoul
- Spain, Madrid, Parque Europa
- Virgin Islands, St. Thomas, Charlotte Amalie
- USA, California, Glendale
- USA, California, Solvang
- USA, Connecticut, Greenwich
- USA, Iowa, Kimballton
- USA, Michigan, Greenville
- USA, Utah, Salt Lake City, International Peace Gardens
References:
● http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Little_Mermaid_(statue)
● http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenville,_Michigan
● http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/06/little_mermaid.html
● The Little Mermaid (Copenhagen, Denmark)
● The Mermaids of Earth coffee-table book: See page 116 in the book about this sculpture.
