You hardly notice them as you walk through Brussels, but the city’s cobblestone streets are among the most beautiful in the world. After years of indifference, the city is now more aware of this aspect of its heritage.
The type of cobblestone varies from one neighbourhood to the next. The hard grey stones laid out on Grand Place are made from Belgian granite quarried in Wallonia. Just a few streets away, Place Saint-Jean is paved with light grey Belgian sandstone.
The lovely sloping Rue des Renards in the Marolles features a warm red cobblestone mined near Jodoigne. Other streets are laid with imported sandstone cobbles from Portugal, India or China.
The earliest cobbled roads were laid down during the ancient Roman period. A unique Belgian industry emerged in the 19th century when cobblestones were exported to cities across the world. The indestructible Belgian stones were used at the time to pave Red Square in Moscow as well as Times Square in New York.
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.
