Old sailors often spoke of mermaids. Were they real? Or were they imaginary?

Hans Christian Anderson wrote a famous story called 'The Little Mermaid'. Anderson was from the city of Copenhagen in Denmark. Today, there is a statue of a mermaid on a rock in the harbour at Copenhagen.

Another story about mermaids is 'The Mermaid of Warsaw'. If you look at the crest for the city of Warsaw in Poland, you will see a Mermaid called Syrenka.

Syrenka was a mermaid.  She lived in the Vistula River and often sat on a rock to feel the warmth of the sun.  One day, she was captured by some peasants who were going to present her a gift to a prince.

However, she escaped and decided to leave the Vistula River. She said that she would return to help the people when they were in danger.

Another story is from Monreale in Sicily, Italy.  One of the statues in Monreale shows a mermaid with two tails.

In Honduras, there is a story of Sirena, a nine eyed mermaid.

The city of Luxembourg was founded by a hero named Siegfried. His wife, Melusina,  was said to have been a mermaid. The local children loved Melusina.

One day, Siegfried saw his wife in the bath. Her tails could easily be seen. Siefried did know that his wife was a mermaid, for her tail changed to legs most of the time. Melusina knew instantly the she was being spied upon, for mermaids are said to be able to tell whenever anyone is looking at them. Melusina was very embarrassed and fled, never to see herself again.