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A young person from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after reportedly defacing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in the state of South Australia on Tuesday, charged with one count of property damage.

In a statement at the time of the September incident, the local council explained that surveillance video showed a individual putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the judge she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a lawyer before her next court date in December.

A day after the alleged incident, the local mayor stated that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be removed without harming the art piece.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those members of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

The mayor said the local government would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism.

When the artwork was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.