Monument To Charles De Coster - After Charles Samuel - Biscuit Porcelain

The Monument to Charles De Coster, located in Ixelles, Belgium, is a work by the sculptor Charles Samuel (1862-1938), designed with the architect Frans De Vestel and inaugurated on 21 July 1894. It pays tribute to the Belgian writer Charles De Coster (1827–1879), author of The Legend and the Heroic, Joyful and Glorious Adventures of Ulenspiegel and Lamme Goedzak (1867).

Rather than depicting the writer, Samuel chose to depict the characters of Thyl Ulenspiegel and Nele. Thyl, a symbol of the Flemish rebel spirit, is depicted as young, simply dressed, sword at his side, looking towards the future. At his side, Nele, barefoot, embodies tenderness and strength: she places an arm on his shoulder and looks at him intensely. She is much more than a companion; she is the inner voice of the people, their memory and their conscience. This choice to give primacy to literary figures, rather than to their author, was bold for the time. It affirmed that fiction could embody collective values and a shared identity.

Behind its formal sobriety, this sculpture conveys a vision of the world: that of a people animated by freedom, fidelity and memory. It recalls, in silence, the power of the story when history falters. Monument to Charles De Coster after the monumental work of Charles Samuel located in Ixelles (Belgium).

Porcelain biscuit. Signed "Ch. Samuel".
Bears under the base the mark of the Belgian porcelain factory "Vermeren".
Height: 32.5 cm