A mermaid made by a mariner maybe?

This is not my area at all. Assuming this is a piece of Sailor/Mariner Folk Art, I have nothing else at all like it. It’s just the latest in a long line of things that have absolutely insisted that I buy them.

On the one hand, the subject and the naive(ish) style of the carving point me towards folk art. But on the other, I’m not sure if she isn’t ‘on purpose’, if you see what I mean.

What I do know is she is beyond tactile and her enigmatic non-expression of an expression, doubtless weathered over time, is so intriguing.

So to those out there who know something about this area, I’d love to know if you agree with the folk art attribution. If you have a view on when or where she was made too, that would be amazing.

This is my first post here, so hello, thanks for looking and bigger thanks if you have a comment to make.