Monument · Brussels, Belgium
Manneken Pis
A small bronze fountain sculpture of a boy in central Brussels, the city's best-known symbol. Built 1619.
Photo: Trougnouf via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. Cropped and resized for display.
Landmark facts
| Location | Brussels, Belgium |
|---|---|
| Type | Monument |
| Built | 1619 |
| Architect | Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder |
| Height | Height: 0.56 m |
| Coordinates | 50.8450° N, 4.3500° E |
Every fact above is taken from the sources listed below; anything no source states is left blank rather than guessed.
What Manneken Pis is known for
A small bronze fountain sculpture of a boy in central Brussels, the city's best-known symbol.
About Manneken Pis
Manneken Pis is a landmark 55.5 cm bronze fountain sculpture in central Brussels, Belgium, depicting a nude boy urinating into the fountain's basin. Though its existence is attested as early as the mid-15th century, Manneken Pis was redesigned by the Brabantine sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder and put in place in 1619. Its blue stone niche in rocaille style dates from 1770. The statue has been repeatedly stolen or damaged throughout its history. Since 1965, a replica has been displayed on site, with the original stored in the Brussels City Museum.
History
The earliest mention of the existence of Manneken Pis dates from the mid-15th century, in an administrative document from 1451-52 about the water lines supplying the fountains of Brussels. The first statue was replaced with a new bronze version, commissioned in 1619 by the Brussels City Council and conceived by the sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder. The statue survived undamaged the bombardment of Brussels of 1695 by the French army, and in 1770 it was integrated into a new blue stone niche in rocaille style. The statue was stolen in 1965 and broken, and the original is now kept in the Brussels City Museum, while a replica has been displayed on site since 1965.
How to get there
| Nearest town | Brussels |
|---|---|
| Nearest airport | Brussels Airport (BRU) |
| Distance from the airport | 6.9 miles (straight line) |
Nearest major airport by straight-line distance from the landmark's coordinates; road distance will be longer.
Airports near this landmark
The airports a visitor would actually fly into, nearest first — each link opens its profile on our sister site AirportProfiles.
- Brussels Airport (BRU) · Zaventem, Belgium · 7.0 miles away
- Brussels South Charleroi Airport (CRL) · Charleroi, Belgium · 26.9 miles away
- Lille Airport (LIL) · Lesquin, France · 57.9 miles away
Landmarks nearby
The closest landmarks in this library, by straight-line distance.
More landmarks in Belgium
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Frequently asked questions
What is Manneken Pis?
A small bronze fountain sculpture of a boy in central Brussels, the city's best-known symbol.
Where is Manneken Pis located?
Manneken Pis is in Brussels, Belgium. Its coordinates are 50.8450° N, 4.3500° E.
How do I get to Manneken Pis?
The nearest town is Brussels, and the nearest airport is Brussels Airport (BRU), about 6.9 miles away (straight line).
When was Manneken Pis built?
Manneken Pis was built 1619.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manneken_Pis — Wikipedia article — overview, history and core facts (CC BY-SA).
- https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q152072 — Wikidata — built year, architect, height/size, visitors, official website (CC0).
- https://github.com/jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports — Nearest major airport computed from landmark and airport coordinates (haversine); airport list: jbrooksuk/JSON-Airports.
Page last updated 13 November 2026.