Hans Christian Andersen statue to be 'buried' in harbour

Danish sculptor Jens Galschiot to submerge monument in city harbour, with plans to raise it again to mark author's birthday

It is, perhaps, a fitting ending for the author of The Little Mermaid: a statue of Hans Christian Andersen is set to be drowned in a Danish harbour by its sculptor.

Artist Jens Galschiot's bronze sculpture of the fairytale author has stood in Odense town square for the last five years. According to Galschiot, the city was planning to make it part of The Storyteller's Fountain, a larger sculpture intended to be placed in the centre of Odense, honouring the Danish author by recreating the stories he wrote.

Money was raised for the project by a common collection committee, the city council and a local fund, says Galschiot, but the financial crisis meant the fund collapsed, and the council's proposal to place the sculpture in a location away from the city centre was rejected for being "unsuitable". "The Storyteller's Fountain was intended as an interactive sculpture, which requires a certain amount of people passing by, which again requires a certain amount of daily activity or 'life' and not some empty pier," said Galschiot.

Now the artist is intending to bury the 10-foot statue in Odense harbor on 8 October, leaving its head still visible from the pier."At one point the culture department talked about placing the sculpture by Odense harbour in order to attract tourists to the area. Now that the project is definitively suspended, I think I will comply with their wish – maybe not in the way that they had expected but on the other hand, it won't cost them anything," he said. "I think it is a very suitable ending to put The Storyteller's Fountain to rest by creating a new story."

The drowning, where "grieving locals" will be served "funeral beer", will not be the end of the statue's story, however: Galschiot is hoping to resurrect the author's likeness on his birthday, 2 April, next year, and for the burial and resurrection of Andersen to become an annual tradition in the city. "We can drive him to the city centre where he can gaze upon the city for a week or so, and then he will probably be reburied," he said.

He does not expect support for his plans from the local council, however. "They will probably hate me, since the happening really portrays the bureaucracy in a poor way. But I do believe and hope that the 'resurrection' or exhumation will be a recurring event," he said. "Lots of people, who are sad that the sculpture is leaving its current placement in the town square, will be glad to see it return."

But he's not sure Andersen, a shy and reclusive man, would have approved. "To be honest I don't think he would like it since he didn't care much for happenings, although he did like bathing a lot, so maybe he wouldn't be that dissatisfied," said Galschiot. "It would also allow for him to keep an eye on the mermaids." A statue of Andersen's fairytale creation The Little Mermaid already exists in Copenhagen harbour – above the waves.

Alison Flood

guardian.co.uk,