World Art Utopia

Manneken-Pis

A crowd in winter coats gathers, some taking photos, at a Brussels street corner, where the small dressed-up bronze Manneken Pis stands high in a stone niche framed by fairy lights and a Christmas tree.
Artwork FileBrussels · Belgium

Manneken-Pis

SeenAugust 2025

Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder (original) · 1619 (original) · Brussels

Photo: William Murphy / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0). Resized from the Street Art Utopia archive; full composition retained.

Brussels' small fountain figure depicts a boy urinating, but the bronze visitors see on the street is a replica. Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder made the original in 1619; it is now kept in the Brussels City Museum. Source Checked

This file distinguishes the outdoor replica from Duquesnoy’s original bronze, now in the Brussels City Museum. The hero is William Murphy’s January 2010 photograph. The Seen stamp follows the photograph taken on 28 August 2025; the October 2026 entry below is a report. www.stib-mivb.be

Dated photograph record

💡 4 things to know

  1. Two places, two objectsThe outdoor replica stands at the corner of Stoofstraat and Eikstraat. The original is displayed at the City Museum on the Grand-Place. Source Checked
  2. A working fountain's descendantVisit Brussels explains that the figure began as decoration for a fountain supplying the city with water. Source Checked
  3. The theft that changed its homeAccording to STIB-MIVB, the figure was stolen in 1965, leaving its feet behind; the rest was later recovered from the canal. Source Checked
  4. A wardrobe of its ownThe costume collection has its own GardeRobe MannekenPis museum, opened in 2017. Dressing the statue marks special occasions. Source Checked

📍 Where it is

Corner of Rue de l'Étuve / Stoofstraat and Rue du Chêne / Eikstraat, Brussels, Belgium Source Checked

Open in Maps

Map location; no clearly framed Street View image was verified.

🗓️ Sightings

  1. 1619

    Duquesnoy makes the original figure

  2. 1965

    Last theft of the original, recounted by STIB-MIVB

  3. 20104 Jan

    William Murphy photographs visitors at the outdoor fountain

  4. 202528 Aug

    Chris Olszewski photographs the fountain crowd

  5. 20267 Oct

    STIB-MIVB confirms that the outdoor figure is a replica

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark reports, records or uncertain photo dates. Publication and upload dates are not camera dates.

✅ The facts

Original sculptor
Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder Source Checked
Original date
1619 Source Checked
Material
Bronze Source Checked
Street figure
Replica Source Checked
Original's location
Brussels City Museum, Grand-Place Source Checked
Fountain corner
Stoofstraat and Eikstraat Source Checked
Costume museum
GardeRobe MannekenPis, opened in 2017 Source Checked

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Photo: William Murphy / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0). Resized from the Street Art Utopia archive; full composition retained.

Last checked: 25 October 2026 · How we verify art