New Delhi: Scientists are planning to examine a mummified “mermaid” which allegedly grants immortality to anyone who eats its flesh to discover its actual nature. The 12-inch enigmatic monster was supposedly caught in the Pacific Ocean between 1736 and 1741 off the coast of Shikoku, Japan, and is currently kept in a shrine in Asakuchi.

Besides, the mysterious form has an unnatural human aspect, apart from its fish-like bottom half. The mummified “mermaid” features a grimacing face with brows, a head full of hair, pointed teeth, and two hands.

Researchers from Kurashiki University of Science and the Arts revealed that they will be taking the mummified “mermaid” for CT scans to know details about the mysterious creature which allegedly has connections to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Moreover, the creator of the project, Hiroshi Kinoshita of the Okayama Folklore Society believes that the mermaid might have religious significance as well.

“Japanese mermaids have a legend of immortality. It is said that if you eat the flesh of a mermaid, you will never die. There is a legend in many parts of Japan that a woman accidentally ate the flesh of a mermaid and lived for 800 years. This ‘Yao-Bikuni’ legend is also preserved near the temple where the mermaid mummy was found. I heard that some people, believing in the legend, used to eat the scales of mermaid mummies,” he said.

However, according to folklore, a mermaid could be a bad portent in the times of Covid-19.