In front of you is the most famous symbol of Brussels, and almost everyone who arrives says the same thing: “Isn’t he small!” He stands about half a metre tall, yet has more stories attached to him than many palaces.

1What we know

As early as the mid-fifteenth century, a document about the city’s water pipes mentions a fountain with a little boy here. The present figure was made by the sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder in 1619 and installed shortly afterwards. Since 1965 what you see is a copy: the original is kept in the City Museum, in the Maison du Roi on the Grand-Place.

2The most-stolen boy

In 1747 French soldiers tried to make off with him, and Louis XV, to make amends to the city, presented him with a gentleman’s suit. In 1817 a repeat offender, Antoine Licas, stole him, and the statue turned up broken into eleven pieces. In 1965 he was stolen again and only the feet remained. Today his wardrobe numbers more than a thousand costumes, and he is dressed according to an official calendar.

None of the stories about his origin is documented: they are legends, and Brussels cherishes every one of them.

3The legends

One tale says the boy put out the fuse of a bomb this way and saved the city. Another claims he is the infant Duke Godfrey III, hung in his cradle from an oak during a battle in 1142, who rallied his troops by peeing on the enemy. Others speak of a lost child or a vengeful witch.

4What to look for

  • The size of the figure, about 55 cm.
  • The Baroque stone niche that frames him.
  • Today’s outfit, if he is wearing one.
The Manneken Pis wearing one of his costumes
His wardrobe runs to more than a thousand outfits.

Documented

There has been a fountain here since the fifteenth century; the present figure is by Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder (1619), it was stolen in 1817 and 1965, and the original is in the City Museum.

Oral tradition

The extinguished fuse, Duke Godfrey III in his cradle and the other stories about the origin of the Manneken Pis are legends with no documentary basis.

Sources and credits

City of Brussels, Brussels City Museum and GardeRobe MannekenPis (brusselscitymuseum.brussels); French Wikipedia, “Manneken-Pis”; Inventaire du patrimoine architectural de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale.

Photos:

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