Jody Serrano
Editor in chiefEditor in Chief at Xataka On. Before joining Webedia, I was a tech reporter at Gizmodo and The Messenger. While I've covered all sorts of things related to technology, I'm specialized in writing about social media, Internet culture, Twitch, and streamers.
In Bruges, a city in northwest Belgium, the hottest souvenir isn’t something as ordinary as a keychain or scrumptious Belgian chocolate—it’s a cobblestone. Yes, the same ones that you walk over on the street.
And officials are pleading with tourists to please to stealing them.
A memorable cobblestone. Franky Demon, Bruges’ public property councilor, recently brought attention to the issue. Demon said that between 50 to 70 cobblestones per month are being stolen from iconic locations in Bruges’ city center, which is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The number of missing cobblestones increases “significantly” during seasons with high tourism, such as spring and summer.
“While some may see this as harmless or quirky, the consequences are serious,” Demon told CNN. “The removal of cobblestones poses a clear safety risk to both residents and visitors. Missing or loosened stones create tripping hazards, and city workers must frequently be dispatched to carry out repairs.”
A pricey souvenir. Those repairs cost money. According to Demon, it costs €200 (about $225) per square meter to replace and fix the damage done to streets. One square meter is about 11 square feet.
The councilor called the need to go out and repair holes and loose stones “unfortunate,” and said the city asked its visitors for “respect.”
“These cobblestones are not just pieces of stone—they are part of our city’s soul,” he said. “We urge visitors to enjoy Bruges, but to leave its beauty intact for others.”
Bruges. Once a “commercial metropolis” in medieval Europe, Bruges is known for being the “cradle of Flemish Primitives,” according to UNESCO. It provided patronage and helped developed artists such as Jan van Eyck and Hans Memling.
UNESCO recognized the Bruges city center for its brick Gothic architecture, which is part of the town’s identity. Although it’s an area that has been occupied since the early Middle Ages, the city center retains its original pattern of streets, canals, and open spaces, among others.
Stealing cobblestones isn’t new. While it may seem like Bruges just happens to receive some very strange tourists that like to steal cobblestones, the practice isn’t new.
Cobblestones along the Paris-Roubaix cycling route have also gone missing over the years, sparking the ire of the volunteer organization that maintains the road used in the race. Cycling Weekly reported in 2018 that fans had taken the cobblestones home as race souvenirs.
“Protect heritage!” the volunteer organization said in response, according to an online translation.
The bad behavior has also hit Rome, which has special sampietrini stones that are made of black basalt. They’re very delicate, and large trucks and buses aren’t allowed to drive over them. In 2017, one of the sampietrini stones made headlines after it was returned by an anonymous tourist.
"Please find enclosed a cobble from one of your cobbled roads," the note accompanying the stone read. “I stole this from Rome last year whilst on holiday as a souvenir… I am really sorry for doing this.”
Images | Niklas Hamann | DDP
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