Djoseph et Françwès

Bronze statue of two grumbling old Walloons on Place du Marché aux Légumes

Two seated bronze figures on Place du Marché aux Légumes, just off the cathedral square, are perhaps the most-photographed Namurois after the citadel. Djoseph and Françwès — Joseph and François — are characters from a long-running cartoon strip in the local newspaper, immortalised here in a bronze argument: a pet snail balanced between them is the cause of the row.

The statue was unveiled in 1989 and quickly absorbed into the city's affection. Locals rub the snail for luck. Have a coffee on the terrace opposite and watch the queue of tourists working out which one is which.

things to do sight
A story
Djoseph and Françwès are the everyman heroes of the Namurois cartoonist Jean Legrand, who drew them in dialect for the local newspaper Vers l'Avenir for more than fifty years. The pair are forever arguing — typically over politics, the weather, the price of vegetables, or in this case a pet snail. The Walloon word play in their squabbles often defeats outsiders.