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A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by affixing plastic eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, 19 years old, appeared via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.

In a statement at the moment of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage captured a individual putting artificial eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

The accused made no plea and told the court she was unwell, according to news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to secure a lawyer before her next court date in the final month of the year.

The following day the reported event, the city leader stated that repairs to the much-loved public artwork would be expensive as the stickers were impossible to be removed without damaging the art piece.

“This wilful damage to a valued public artwork is inappropriate and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

She added the council would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the damage.

At the time the sculpture was first proposed, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.

Priced at A$136,000 ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.