Every city in Belgium likes to identify itself. Brand itself, if you like. Antwerp’s symbol is a hand. Bruges has chosen a bear. And Oudenaarde in East Flanders has a pair of spectacles as its logo.
You might want to ask why the city would choose spectacles. The answer is found on the roof of the town hall, where a figure representing the 16th-century city guard Hanske De Krijger looks out across the city.
Hanske unfortunately fell asleep at his post after drinking too much Oudenaarde beer. He picked the worst possible moment to neglect his duty as Emperor Charles V was waiting outside the locked city gates.
It might have been the end of Hanske. But the Emperor turned out to have a sense of humour. As a gentle rebuke, he ordered the city to add a pair of spectacles to its coat of arms.
Derek Blyth’s hidden secret of the day: Derek Blyth is the author of the bestselling “The 500 Hidden Secrets of Belgium”. He picks out one of his favourite hidden secrets for The Brussels Times every day.
