THE SYMBOL OF BRUSSELS IS A PEEING BOY STATUE!
BUT DID YOU KNOW HE ALSO HAS A SISTER & A PET DOG?
Errrrmmmm... There are 3 peeing statues in Brussels. Yes, there are 3 sculptures that are urinating in public in Brussels!!! One of which is very famous of a little boy and the rest 2, not so famous! As soon as I reached Brussels, early in the morning, I headed to Grand Place to see the Flower Carpet. After seeing it from the ground, I had quite sometime before the balcony view opened, I headed out to see the most quirky things to do in Brussels - checking out the 3 urinating sculptures in Brussels. Btw, these are not only the top Brussels attractions but also some of the free things to do in Brussels!
WHY ARE THERE PEEING STATUES IN BRUSSELS?
Well, what's the obsession of the Belgian people & pissing???!!!!! I read somewhere of this explanation - Belgium is synonymous with beer. Belgium is known for its beer and the Belgian people drink so much beer. Drinking beer increases the tendency to urinate and that's the obsession of Belgians with pissing!!! I don't know if it is true or not, but I'd like to believe it, coz it is such a damn interesting reason!!!
MANNEKEN PIS - THE FAMOUS PEEING BOY STATUE OF BRUSSELS
To begin with the most famous statue in Brussels - Manneken Pis. Even if you have just 24 hrs in Brussels, this is a must-visit! The first reaction as soon as I went to Manneken Pis was - OMG, it's sooo tiny!!!! I expected a slightly bigger statue and standing at just 61cm, he's just too tiny and insignificant. I reached here at around 8.30AM and there was nobody there. I reached the spot and then I wasn't even sure if I was in the right spot, even after noticing this boy, coz somehow I felt he wouldn't be this tiny!!!! Anyways, in spite of being tiny, he's the icon of Brussels on the World stage.
History of Manneken Pis Statue: The original statue of Manneken Pis was made of stone in the middle ages and has been mentioned since 1415! It played a vital role in the city's water supply system till the 19th C. Later it was replaced with a bronze replica of the original stone statue in 1619. However, Hiëronymus Duquesnoy the Elder the sculptor gave it a Baroque makeover much in sync with the contemporary art of that era. Unfortunately, Manneken Pis was vandalized and stolen many times. In 1966 after being stolen and recovered in the Brussels-Charleroi canal, the statue was taken to the Maison du Roi museum in Grand Place for safekeeping. Today, what we see in the street corner is a replica!
Clothing of Manneken Pis Statue: Yes, the sculpture is clothed many a time to signify the current affair or festivities and I was rather glad I got to see the nak*d boy as he was!
But here's the best part, whether you see the sculpture clothed or not in public, you can go to see it the other way round in the 2 museums nearby. If Manneken Pis is clothed, visit Maison du Roi Museum (Brussels City Museum) to see the original sculpture n*ked. If Manneken Pis is n*ked, visit the Garderobe Manneken Pis Museum in the next street to see more than a 1000 costumes of Manneken Pis!
Where is Manneken Pis statue in Brussels (On Google Maps)? Manneken Pis
How to reach Manneken Pis statue? 3 mins (300m walk) from Grand Place in the South Western direction
Manneken Pis Tickets & Timings: Free & 24x7
JEANEKKE PIS - PEEING GIRL STATUE IN BRUSSELS
From Manneken Pis, I set out in search of his sister Jeanneke Pis. This was even more difficult to find that early in the morning. It was at a walkable distance from Manneken Pis and at the end of a tiny lane filled with pubs within a grilled enclosure just opposite Delirium Cafe & Bar. This was designed by Denis-Adrien Debouvrie in 1985 and was installed here in 1987. As a sculpture, she is almost the same height as her brother, but since she's squatting, her actual height is much higher than her brother! This too is a working fountain, but it wasn't working early that morning. The proceeds from the coins that are thrown into this fountain (like a wishing well) are forwarded to the medical research for cancer.
Where is Jeanekke Pis statue in Brussels (On Google Maps)? Jeanekke Pis
How to reach Jeanekke Pis statue? 3 mins (250m walk) from Grand Place in the North-eastern direction
Jeanekke Pis Tickets & Timings: Free & 24x7
ZINNEKE PIS - PEEING DOG STATUE OF BRUSSELS
From there, I started off to meet their pet dog Zinneke Pis (Het Zinneke). Can you see him in the first pic above???? There at the junction of the crossroads near the iron stump.
Unlike the other 2, this isn't a working model, but a stand-alone statue and it's open to the public to touch & feel and not in any enclosure. This sculpture is so natural depicting the natural action of a dog when it urinates, lifting one of its hind legs, which is really so so funny!
Who sculpted Het Zinneke (Peeing Dog) sculpture: Het Zinneke was sculpted by Tom Frantzen in 1998, the same Belgian sculptor who also created the sculpture of Herge in front of Herge Museum in Louvain la Neuve, Madame Chapeau in the next street, Agent 15 in Molenbeek, Pieter Brueghel in front of Chapelle, singing Jacques Brel in front of Jaques Brel Museum etc.
Where is Zinneke Pis (Het Zinneke) statue in Brussels (On Google Maps)? Het Zinneke
How to reach Zinneke Pis (Het Zinneke) statue? 7 mins (600m walk) from Grand Place in the North-western direction
Zinneke Pis (Het Zinneke) Tickets & Timings: Free & 24x7
Wow,those sculptures are really intriguing, but very beautiful. I like the idea behind it. It speaks about the passion of people to drink "beers", it may sound weird, but honestly I like it.
ReplyDeleteWow.. they do tell something to people. Different views by different people.. but for art lovers.. it's great. Thanks for sharing,
ReplyDeleteSome different creation for the people specially who associated with art & craft. Some people may call it shit but those are really wonderful pieces of art.
ReplyDeleteWe see things in different ways. I really adore the art work. Thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteI have seen that pissing boy statue and surprised to read that it is smaller than how it looks. Just like how I felt when I saw the Mona Lisa and how small it is.
ReplyDeleteI took a double take at the bull peeing~ It's indeed very unique and different. Haha... I didn't know Piss is spelled as pis in Belgium. Love the rationale behind that though! Hahaha
ReplyDeleteStatues of animals and people pissing! haha. This is an interesting place and I'd love to see it someday!
ReplyDeleteI remember when I was in Paris they told me to take a train to Belgium and check this spots. Now, I've seen them through your post.
ReplyDeleteIf those statues are displayed here, I'm very sure most people who will see it will laugh. I find it very creative though, I'm sure there's a deep reason for that.
ReplyDeleteThis is so LOL and cute! The city looks so charming by the way.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this. How I wish I can travel to Belgium one day. My parents and older sister visited there 2 years back and they said it is a beautiful country.
ReplyDeleteAaaaah, really makes me crave for Belgium! I am definitely including Belgium in the list! This inspires me. Bookmarking your Belgim posts. :)
ReplyDeleteI had no idea there were statues like these in Brussels. It's quite amusing when you think about it. I think it's fun to hunt them down to feed your curiosity.
ReplyDeleteGreat statue... It's great to visit and have a look at these artistic statue...
ReplyDeleteNever heard about those statues before, but those are all so amazing and cute haha. Hope I could visit Belgium soon. Thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteI'm not quite sure how I feel about some of these statues haha, but they are deep in the cities history so that is good i guess. Hahaha, I would love for that to be the real reason for all the 'peeing'.
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