Manneken Pis
You want to donate a new suit to Manneken Pis ?
Your club, fraternity or society will soon be 25 years old and you want to
mark the occasion ? Yes, why not ?
But how do we go about this ? Who shall we ask ?
Here follows some advice for those who want to offer a new suit to
our Manneken-Pis.
Start early, start at least six months in advance. Start with a preliminary
request, include a picture or a drawing that clearly shows what the suit will look
like, include also a description of what your group, fraternity or asscociation is
all about. A new suit must be approved by a Commission that meets in assembly
only once a month.
The suit you want to donate must respect a number of criteria: it
must not be a commercial publicity, it must not overtly promote a philosophy or a
religion, it must be for a boy or a man, it must respect certain moral standards,
etc.
Before you even start making the suit...
Please contact:
Mrs. Pascale Salesse
Chef du Service Culture de la Ville de Bruxelles
Rue Sainte-Catherine, 11
1000 Bruxelles
Tel : 00 32 2 279 64 31
Fax: 00 32 2 279 64 29
pascale.salesse@brucity.be
Give her some information on your organisation, fraternity or club and on the suit you propose to donate with perhaps a picture or drawing.
And here follow the name and e-mail address of the President of
the Order of the Friends of Manneken Pis. He can answer all the questions
for which you couldn't find an answer here.
Mr. Edmond Vandenhaute,
edmond.vandenhaute@gmail.com.
For many years it has been the tradition that the new suit is offered to the City of
Brussels during an informal ceremony in City Hall in the presence of a representative
of the City, the generous donor and some of his associates or members and a few (dozen)
members of the Order of the Friends of Manneken Pis. The City proposes a toast
at the end of the ceremony while the dresser discreetly helps Manneken Pis into his
new suit behind a flag of the city.
When all is ready the Friends of Manneken Pis, the generous donor and his friends go
in procession to Manneken where the suit will be unveiled.
This procession is usually livened up with some music. If the donor doesn't
have a band or a few musician friends he can always ask the Meyboom Band to accompany
them. The musicians of the Meyboom Band have
done this many many times and they know exactly what's needed and wanted.
We can't recommend them highly enough.
To book the Meyboom Band contact Mrs. Nadia Luypaert
(nadialuypaert@gmail.com) well in
advance to make sure they don't sign up for another engagement on your very special
day.
If you prefer to sew the suit yourself or if you have a friend who has the required
skills please inform Mrs. Salesse. She will send you the pattern as soon as
your new suit has been approved by the Consultative Commission. This pattern
is absolutely indispensible to make a suit that our Manneken can put on.
The wardrobes of Manneken Pis—he now has
1107 suits—are kept
in the King's House (la Maison du Roi) on the Grand'Place (facing City Hall) and in
the rue du Chêne 19, Brussels where the newest suits are always prominently
displayed for a few weeks. Please do yourself a favour and go visit this
museum.
Needless to say it's not the first time someone asks us what to do to donate a suit
to Manneken Pis and it surely won't be the last. When you have donated your
suit please let us know how it went. We welcome your comments and suggestions,
also about this here document.
Please contact us and let us know how it went.
Thank you very much.
Manneken Pis doesn't just wear new suits. You can also request that on a
day that is quite special for your society or group, our Manneken wear the suit you
gave him. Some groups want to see him every year on their anniversary in their
uniform. Here we tell you all you need
to know to see Manneken Pis in your suit on your special day.
All about Manneken Pis
Documents concernant Manneken Pis et l'Ordre des Amis de Manneken Pis
More pictures of Manneken Pis
The legends of Manneken Pis
Manneken Pis in
2007,
2008,
2011,
2012,
2013 and
2014
The official website of the Order of the Friends of Manneken Pis
All about Brussels folklore
Most recent update: 21 April 2021