Mug Shot — «Belgium - Manneken Pis»

City: Belgium Country: Belgium Edition: 2008 Icon Edition Belongs to: 757 users (59 trading, 122 seeking)

Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.

Manneken Pis - a symbol of Brussels, statue-fountain made ​​of bronze, depicting naked, urinating boy.

As legend says, the boy was the son of one of the kings of Belgium. While hunting in the forests around Brussels, the boy disappeared. The king commanded to search for all nearby woods, but nobody could find the child. Only after a few days, when everyone had lost hope to find a prince, a forester, very thirsty, he heard a murmuring rill. He pushed the branches of suspending it from the water and saw a naked boy urinating. Another legend says that in the fourteenth century, Brussels was attacked and was besieged. Invaders planned to put explosive materials under the city walls to make easy access to the center. But a little boy named Juliaanske, spying on the aggressors, he found the place where the explosion was to take place. Seeing what is happening urinated on the burning fuse and saved the city.
Figure of the fifteenth century, initially made ​​in the stone was stolen, as the later version. Finally in 1619 the figure made ​​of bronze. Figure is being often dressed in costumes offered by the cultural associations, craft, regions and official national delegations. Until June 2007, Manneken Pis has received 789 different costumes, which are stored in the Museum of the City of Brussels.


photo by lucky
edited by mobydick74

  Belgium, MIC, MIT, MIC/MIT

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