Manneken Pis

Manneken Pis is a landmark 55.5 cm bronze fountain sculpture in central Brussels, Belgium, depicting a puer mingens; a naked little boy urinating into the fountain's basin. The archives of Saints-Michel-et-Gudule Cathedral show that he served as a public fountain as early as 1388. Back then, he was in stone – the bronze statue we know today was installed in 1619. There is in fact more than one legend about Manneken Pis, who was once also known as "Petit Julien". The most famous legend claims that the statuette depicts a young boy who saved Brussels from disaster. The enemy was at the gates ready to bring down the city walls with gunpowder. Fortunately, a little boy who happened to be around desperately needed to relieve himself and in doing so he extinguished the fuse. An alternative legend has it that a little boy emptied his bladder against a witch’s door. The furious hag made to cast an instant hex, damning the kid to stay in that compromising stance till the end of time. A brave bystander who had witnessed the whole scene quickly replaced the boy with a statue to foil the evil crone. The statue has continued what the little boy started ever since.