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A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, 19 years old, participated remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, charged with one count of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the local council said that surveillance video showed a person placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and informed the court she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the judge advising her to secure a lawyer before her next court date in December.

The following day the alleged incident, the local mayor said that restoration to the popular public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be removed without harming the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is inappropriate and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

The mayor added the local government would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.

At the time the artwork was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.