Manneken Pis Museum

About the museum

The building De Permanensje stands on the Markt of Geraardsbergen, next to the town hall. In the Middle Ages it was the Gulden Cop, the meat hall or guild house of the butchers. It was rebuilt in 1810 and used to store grain; the name refers to the fire brigade's standby service (permanentiedienst), which was housed there later. The former Manneken Pis museum was converted, together with the old information office, into the modern tourist information office and regional visitor centre Visit Geraardsbergen, with a multimedia experience of video, sound and smell about the town and the Flemish Ardennes.

Since May 2016 the Manneken Pis Museum has been housed in the information office. In a specially furnished room you see Manneken Pis figurines and a large part of the wardrobe of the Geraardsbergen Manneken Pis: in 2025 it counted 365 costumes. This Manneken Pis is the oldest in Belgium: town accounts show that it was supplied in 1459, about 160 years before the one in Brussels.

In the same information office the town also shows the Geraardsbergen Chantilly Lace Collection. The black silk lace reached our region from France in the first half of the eighteenth century, and Geraardsbergen became known for its production in the nineteenth century. The collection has 130 unique pieces.

Highlights

• Costumes of the Geraardsbergen Manneken Pis (365 in 2025) and Manneken Pis figurines
• The oldest Manneken Pis in Belgium, since 1459
• Geraardsbergen Chantilly Lace Collection with 130 pieces of black silk lace
• Multimedia experience with video, sound and smell about Geraardsbergen and the Flemish Ardennes
• Tourist information office with regional products, books and cycling routes

Permanent exhibitions

• Manneken Pis Museum – A specially furnished room shows Manneken Pis figurines and a large part of the wardrobe, with more than three hundred costumes of the Geraardsbergen Manneken Pis.
• Geraardsbergse Chantillykant Collectie – The collection shows 130 pieces of black silk lace and tells how this lace shaped the town in the nineteenth century.

Founded

2016

Operated by

Stad Geraardsbergen

Admission & discounts

An admission price for the museum is not listed on the Visit Geraardsbergen website. The Geraardsbergen Chantilly lace exhibition can be viewed free of charge in the information office. A guided tour for groups (max. 25 people) costs €70.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

In the information office you will find Geraardsbergen souvenirs, books, cycling routes, gadgets, stamps, postcards and walking routes (price list on the website).

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit