The Little Mermaid

Copenhagen's unassuming icon
Noteworthy for: The statue has been a target for vandalism, political statements and pranks over the years, from decapitation by Situationist artists in the 60s to being draped in a burka in 2004.

Be warned: your first sight of Copenhagen's famous mascot may be somewhat underwhelming. Sitting pensively on a rock at the entrance to the harbour, Edvard Eriksen's 1913 bronze sculpture is really rather small.
Still, it hasn't stopped the statue from becoming one of Denmark's most popular attractions. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's story of the same name, Carlsberg founder Carl Jacobsen commissioned the statue from Eriksen, and subsequently gave it to the city. The mermaid's face is modelled on Ellen Prince, a popular ballet dancer, whilst it's rumoured that Eriksen's wife Eline posed for the body.

From the statue, you have good views of both Holmen, the site of the city's new opera house, and Christianshavn, which sits on the opposite side of the harbour entrance.