Place du Petit Sablon - Brussels, Belgium
N 50° 50.385 E 004° 21.382
31U E 595501 N 5632881
The Place du Petit Sablon is a public square with one of the most beautiful gardens in Brussels, Belgium.
Waymark Code: WMMVZJ
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Date Posted: 11/11/2014
Views: 10
"To the southeast of the church, and slightly uphill, lies the Petit Sablon square. It is a roughly rectangular garden, featuring trees, hedges, flowers and most notably, statues.
In the Middle Ages, the Zavelbeek (Sablon Brook) had its source in the Petit Sablon. It flowed in nearly a straight line into the Senne river, joining it roughly at the modern place Fontainas/Fontainasplaats. Its course is still followed by the streets in the area to this day. The Petit Sablon was the site of the Saint John Hospital's cemetery, mentioned above, until it was moved.
The present-day garden was created by the architect Henri Beyaert, and was inaugurated in 1890. It is surrounded by an ornate wrought iron fence inspired by one which once decorated the Coudenberg Palace. The fence is punctuated by tall stone pillars; atop each pillar is a statue of one or more historical professions, with 48 statues in total. To ensure that the statues were stylistically coherent, Beyart asked painter Xavier Mellery to design all of the statues. Each pillar has a unique design, as does each section of fence.
In the centre of the garden lies a fountain of Counts Edgmont and Horne, who were symbols of resistance against the Spanish tyranny that sparked the Dutch Revolt. The fountain was initially in front of the Maison du Roi/Broodhuis on the Grand Place, the site of their execution. The fountain is surrounded by a semicircle of ten statues of political figures, intellectuals and artists from the 16th century."
--Wikipedia (
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