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A Statue of Peace

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Mar 12, 2010
by: mikellemancini
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    On February 26, 2010 the Little Mermaid statue was stolen from the International Peace Garden. Hearing this initial sentence sounds a bit comical, but when you hear the significance and the history of this statue it is not a laughing matter.
   Although a replica of the original seen in Copenhagen, there is more to the statue than meets the eye.

"The replica was made in 1955, and is only one of three made by the artist Edvard Eriksen. It was donated by the Danish people of Utah and an LDS Danish organization, according to documents detailing the donation."Little Mermaid

    Around the world there are various Little Mermaid statues, the fact that the one in Salt Lake was made by the artist Edvard Eriksen, adds a whole other element to the theft. Edvard Eriksen was the original artist who created the first sculpture of the Little Mermaid that still can be found mounted on a rock in Copenhagen.

the-little-mermaid-copenhagen-dk121.jpg
 

http://www.planetware.com/i/photo/the-little-mermaid-copenhagen-dk121.jpg

 
This is a picture of the original statue that is found in Copenhagen that is done by the same artist as the replica found in Salt Lake City. 
    Many people do not realize how unique and rare this replica in Salt Lake truly is/was. The first point in which I already mentioned was the fact that it is only one of three Mermaid sculptures done by the original artist of Edvard Eriksen. The second point that makes this statue very unique and precious is the fact that it is the second replica of this sort that has been given to Salt Lake City.

This isn't the first time a mermaid has disappeared from the garden. Just a few years after the park was dedicated in 1953 the original Little Mermaid statue was stolen from the Danish section, said Steve Lemmon of the International Peace Gardens Academy, a non-profit organization that does promotion and fund raising. The King of Denmark had to approve the donation of the replacement half-size replica of the statue housed in Copenhagen. Along with Salt Lake City, Hong Kong and Bern, Switzerland also were given copies. Little Mermaid

    Although not adding to the significance of this second statue/replica, the fact that the donation of this statue had to be approved by the King of Denmark resembles some of its worth. 

 

 

http://www.sltrib.com/portlet/article/html/render_gallery.jsp?articleId=14641806&siteId=297&startImage=1
 
    The fact that this beautiful statue is a one of only three seen around the world made by the original artist is one thing, but the fact that this statue was found in a "Peace" garden brings in a whole other element. It takes a lot of guts for someone to take a statue that ultimately represents peace.