The Big Mermaid was commissioned by Danish restaurateur Peter Bech and installed in 2006. Bech commissioned it from China, carved in granite. It was originally installed a few hundred feet from the famous statue of The Little Mermaid, but in 2018 it was moved to the city of Dragør, some 10 miles south.
The sculpture is 13′ tall and weighs about 14 tonnes, so it is certainly big. Bech designed it to be BIG so as to overcome frequent comments from tourists about “The Little Mermaid” being smaller than expected. While it is actually life-size, it can seem small on its rock in the large harbor. Bech also designed the mermaid to be well endowed, as another point of contrast.
I imagine that the close proximity to The Little Mermaid was a bit of a sore point to some, in a way detracting from and possibly cheapening the experience of visiting The Little Mermaid, which has stood the test of time for more than 100 years as an admired piece of art, as a beloved tourist attraction and almost as a mascot for Copenhagen and Denmark – and Hans Christian Andersen.
The new location at Dragør Fort is in the parking lot in front of the fort, which was built in 1910 and was sold into private ownership in 2002. It is now a venue for event and festivities, concerts and nature trips.
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