03 — ARTWORK
Manneken Pis
DUQUESNOY, Jérôme, the Elder · 1619 →
- MEDIUM
- Bronze, height 61 cm
- TYPE
- Genre
PALETTE
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- FILE
- 854 × 900 px · JPEG
COMMENTARY
UNDERLINED TERMS ARE DEFINED IN THE GLOSSARY.
Manneken Pis is a small bronzeAn alloy of copper (usually about 90 per cent) and tin, often also containing small amounts of other metals such as lead or zinc. Since antiquity it has been the metal most commonly used in cast sculpture because of its strength, durability, and the fact that it is easily workable - both hot and cold - by a variety of processes. It is easier to cast than copper because it has a lower melting-point, and its great tensile strength makes possible the protrusion of unsupported parts - an advantage over marble sculpture. The colour of bronze is affected by the proportion of tin or other metals present, varying from silverish to a rich, coppery red, and its surface beauty can be enhanced when it acquires a patina. fountain sculpture in Brussels designed by Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder. The name means 'Little Man Pee' in Dutch. It depicts a little naked boy urinating.
The statue was placed in its current place in either 1618 or 1619. Manneken Pis stands a short distance from the Grand Place and the Brussels Town Hall. In the course of centuries, the little statue has become a vital part of culture and life in Brussels. Manneken Pis has numerous stories attached to it and whenever a festival, celebration, or party takes place, the little boy joins in. He has an outfit for every single occasion and is generally put into a different one several times per week. There are no less than 900 costumes that fit the statue. Some of those costumes are on display at the City Museum at the Grand Place.
Some costumes represent the colours of nations that visit Brussels, others resemble uniforms of certain occupations and professions. Occasionally a keg of beer is hooked up to the statue, resulting in the boy urinating beer.
CITE THIS RECORD — BIBTEX
@online{wga-r715681d60e4774,
author = {Krén, Emil and Marx, Daniel},
title = {Manneken Pis by DUQUESNOY, Jérôme, the Elder},
organization = {{Web Gallery of Art}},
date = {2026-09-09},
url = {https://beta.wga.hu/artists/duquesnoy-jrme-the-elder-r5e500cac80b1cd/manneken-pis-r715681d60e4774},
urldate = {2026-09-09},
langid = {english}
}ACCESSED 2026-09-09. REPLACE THE AUTHOR FIELD WITH THE COMMENTARY AUTHOR WHERE ONE IS NAMED.
OTHER WORKS BY JÉRÔME DUQUESNOY THE ELDER
The archive catalogues no further works by this artist.
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