MERMAID SEA

Home > Haitian Metal Art > MERMAIDS/SEA

Mermaids have been with us for centuries. They have crossed boundaries of time and space, sometimes one culture enriching the mermaid lore of another. The Ancient Egyptians had mermaids, deriving them from the mythology of Ra. The Ancient Greeks’ original Sirens - half woman, half bird - tempted and tormented sailors and adventurers, but somewhere along the millennial line, bird wings were replaced with scaly fish tails. Hence, the Sirens were summarily sent to dwell in the watery realm of Poseidon. The Inuit have a mermaid, in the form of Sedna. The Australian Aboriginals have her in the form of Yawkyawk, and the Haitians have her in the form of La Sirene. The West African Igbo tribal legends included many water spirits, the most powerful of which was Mami Wata. When European explorers arrived on African shores with carvings on the bows of their ships that were half woman and half fish, Mami Wata was given form. As the Europeans began to engage in African slave trade to further their economic interests, the Igbo brought their tribal traditions along with them and thus, Mami Wata became La Sirene in the New World. This ideology had already been put forth by no less than Christopher Columbus in his explorations of Hispaniola, where he wrote of siting, “…three mermaids, though these were not as pretty as mermaids that had been previously described to me. In fact, somehow in the face, they appeared more as men.” Captain John Smith’s experience in 1614 was evidently more pleasant, as he described, “a fish-tailed mermaid with round eyes, a finely-shaped nose, well-formed ears and long green hair.” What he thought of her naked breasts was curiously avoided his historical account! Today, La Sirene is recognized in Haiti as a powerful water spirit. She has long-flowing hair, in contrast to that of Haitian women, thereby a sign of her “other-worldliness.” She is usually depicted with a comb, symbolizing her beauty and vanity. Often her imagery includes a mirror as well. Her underwater domain is considered to be the back of the mirror, and the glass itself represents the boundary between her world and ours.