Originally published on September 13, 2025
Today we hung around Dinant and enjoyed a more relaxing day. The inventor of the saxophone, Adolphe Sax, was born here in 1814, and the instrument has become a proud symbol of the city. The most obvious reminder is the giant painted fiberglass saxophones scattered throughout town. These were originally created for an art competition in 2010, with designs contributed by countries around the world. They say there’s a map to help you find them, but it’s not much help—it doesn’t show all the locations clearly, nor even how many there are. From what I could piece together, there are 35 in total, but with 4 on loan and 1 under repair, 30 remain in Dinant. Peggy and I made it our mission to hunt them down today and think we tracked 29 of them—so close to a clean sweep!
To honor Sax further, there’s also the “House of Sax,” a small but engaging tribute to his life. It’s more of a display than a full museum, but it does provide insight into the man behind the instrument. Sax wasn’t just a one-hit wonder—he was a prolific inventor who also designed improvements for brass instruments and even worked on military band instrumentation. His saxophone, patented in 1846, bridged the gap between brass and woodwinds, giving the world the warm, powerful sound that would later define jazz. Not bad for a kid from this quiet riverside town!
