Editing Manneken Pis (section)

===20th century–present===
[[File:Manneken Pis Original.jpg|thumb|left|upright|The original ''Manneken Pis'' statue from 1619 is kept at the [[Brussels City Museum]].]]
[[File:Bruselas, Manneken Pis 3.jpg|thumb|The surroundings of ''Manneken Pis'' give an idea of its size.]]

''Manneken Pis'' experienced similar misadventures in the 20th century. Two attempted thefts occurred in 1955 and 1957.{{sfn|Heymans|2003|p=13}}{{sfn|Patigny|2019|p=99}} Some accounts say that it has been stolen up to seven times. Notably, in January 1963, students of the [[Antwerp]] student's association "De Wikings" of the Sint-Ignatius Handelshogeschool (Higher Business Education), now part of the [[University of Antwerp]], "hijacked" the statue for five days before handing it over to the Antwerp authorities. The local and international press covered the story, contributing to the students' collection of funds donated to two orphanages. The case did go further, however, and the base was replaced identically by the [[La Fonderie, Brussels Museum of Industry and Labour|''Compagnie des Bronzes de Bruxelles'']], to which the statue was anchored by a reinforced bronze attachment.{{sfn|Patigny|2019|p=99–100}}<ref>{{Cite journal|year=1963|title=Bulletin communal : Compte rendu de la séance du 7 janv. 1963|url=https://archief.brussel.be/Colossus/BulletinsCommunaux/Bulletins/Documents/Bxl_1963_Tome_I_Part_2.pdf|journal=Publication périodique: Ville de Bruxelles|publisher=Imprimerie Schaumans|volume=1|pages=93–98}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|year=1963|title=Bulletin communal : Compte rendu de la séance du 21 janv. 1963 (part 2)|url=https://archief.brussel.be/Colossus/BulletinsCommunaux/Bulletins/Documents/Bxl_1963_Tome_I_Part_2.pdf|journal=Publication périodique: Ville de Bruxelles|publisher=Imprimerie Schaumans|volume=1|pages=99–110}}</ref>

Things were more serious when it disappeared in 1965; the statue had been broken by the thief and only the feet and ankles remained.{{sfn|Heymans|2003|p=13}}{{sfn|Couvreur|Deknop|Symons|2005|p=40}}{{sfn|Patigny|2019|p=100}} In June 1966, the Antwerp magazine ''De Post'' received an anonymous phone call, signalling that the "body" was in the [[Brussels–Charleroi Canal|Charleroi Canal]]. It was found there by divers, sent by the magazine, and was brought back to Brussels on 27 June.<ref>''Le Soir'', 29 June 1966</ref> Restored once again, the statue was sheltered and the original version is now kept and displayed on the second floor of the Brussels City Museum, at the [[Brussels City Museum|King's House]], on the Grand-Place.{{sfn|De Roose|1999|p=20}}{{sfn|Couvreur|Deknop|Symons|2005|p=26}}{{sfn|Patigny|2019|p=101}} In the meantime, a replica of the statue had already been commissioned by Brussels' authorities and cast by the ''Compagnie des Bronzes''.{{sfn|Patigny|2019|p=100}} The new statue was thus installed in place of the old one and this version still adorns the niche on the Rue du Chêne to this day.

In late 2018, city technician Régis Callens discovered that the basin of the statue had developed a leak, leading to a reported {{convert|1000|–|1500|L}} of water being used per day.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dhnet.be/regions/bruxelles/pendant-des-annees-manneken-pis-a-urine-des-milliers-de-litres-d-eau-potable-5c952504d8ad5874770407a2|title=Pendant des années, Manneken-Pis a uriné des milliers de litres d'eau potable|last=DH.be|website=www.dhnet.be|date=22 March 2019|language=fr|access-date=2019-03-27}}</ref> The leak occurred for an unknown number of years, unnoticed among the several hundred water features in the City of Brussels and was only later discovered with the help of Shayp water monitoring technology.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lecho.be/dossier/start-ups/la-start-up-bruxelloise-shayp-fait-la-chasse-aux-fuites-d-eau/10067005.html|title=La start-up bruxelloise Shayp fait la chasse aux fuites d'eau|date=2018-11-08|website=L'Echo|language=fr|access-date=2019-09-30}}</ref> The statue received a temporary fix in March 2019, with a permanent recirculating system set to be installed. The solution was announced during Brussels Water Week where city officials cited the situation as motivation to check for similar problems in other fountains.<ref>{{Cite news|first=Alan|last=Hope|url=https://www.brusselstimes.com/54821/manneken-pis-will-no-longer-waste-drinking-water|title=Manneken Pis will no longer waste drinking water|date=24 March 2019|work=The Brussels Times|access-date=11 April 2023|language=en-gb}}</ref>