Night thieves haul away sculptor's 'child'

Rosie Gill's Oamaru stone work, Nouvelle Aventure de Femme.

Artist Helme Heine spent a year putting his heart into the creation of a $10,000 brass statue that sat proudly at the end of his driveway.

Over time the mermaid statue has become a landmark in Russell in the Bay of Islands but today only the post it was mounted on remains.

On Monday night thieves hauled the 50kg solid brass statue from a steel rod in the post, devastating not only Heine but also many members of the community.

"I put all of my heart into my work. It's like losing a child," Heine said.

"It's not just the money value ... it was here for everybody. That's what I hate most, Russell also feels it."

Heine, an internationally renowned artist and storybook writer, is not the only sculptor to have his work stolen recently. During Easter weekend thieves broke into Stevenson building supplies in Albany and stole a $3000 stone sculpture that was being stored there in the secure yard.

Nouvelle Aventure de Femme had been created by Christchurch artist Rosie Gill during a recent symposium.

It was made from Oamaru stone and depicts a woman's head.

Although there is nothing to suggest a link between the two thefts, police cannot rule out the possibility that the pieces were stolen to order. They were both heavy and would have needed several people to move them. They were also unique and would be difficult to sell on the open market without being recognised. The thefts follow that of the celebrated bronze Napier statue Pania of the Reef last year, which caused much distress in the community until its recovery three weeks later.

Constable Brett Morgan of Browns Bay said the thieves who stole the Albany stone statue went to great lengths.

They would have had to lift the statue over the fence at Stevenson's yard. It's not a small thing. It would have taken quite a committed person who wanted it."

Mr Morgan said police were checking to see if any similar items had been stolen from the North Shore.

Constable Paul Tipene of Russell said he had warned scrap metal yards that the thieves might try to sell the brass mermaid statue.

Meanwhile, Heine is offering a $1000 reward for anyone with information that leads to the return of his prized statue.

* On Anzac Day two decorative Italian pots, weighing up to 200kg and worth $1000 each, were stolen from the North Shore.

The pots were taken from Graeme and Margaret Anderson's Birkenhead home just after 4am and were the only ones of their kind in the country when they were bought five years ago.