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A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a mythical creature by applying plastic eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, 19 years old, appeared via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of damaging property.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities said that CCTV footage showed a individual putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

The accused made no plea and told the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the judge advising her to find a legal representative before her next court date in December.

A day after the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that repairs to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the stickers were impossible to be detached without damaging the sculpture.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have embraced the Blue Blob.”

She said the local government would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.

When the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and design.

Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.