This monument is located in the municipal square in front of Passchendaele church. It consists of a bronze statue depicting La Fontaine’s fable ‘The raven and the fox‘. The granite base refers to the internationally renowned Passchendaele cheese.
Passchendaele cheese
Passchendaele cheese is a world-famous, very creamy cheese. The cheese was created in the 20th century by the Donck family: Romain Donck and Germaine Spruytte. During World War I, the couple fled to Normandy, where they ran their own hotel-restaurant.
After the war, the couple returned to Belgium. They married in 1926 and started producing their own cheese together in s’ Graventafelstraat in Passendale. The business grew rapidly and 10 years later, in 1936, they moved to a larger building. That building still exists today, better known as De Oude Kaasmakerij.
The raven and the fox
The raven and the fox is a fable by French writer Jean de la Fontaine (1621-1695). It is about a vain raven and a sly fox. The vain raven is fond of flattery. The fox plays on a raven’s vanity and entices him to sing a song. The raven does this unsuspectingly and drops the piece of cheese from its beak. The fox got what he wanted and goes on his merry way. The moral of the story: those foolish enough to believe laudatory talk will be cheated where they stand.
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