Can you hear it? The sound of metal being heated, presses at work, coins falling by hundreds. For almost a century, the Munthof neighbourhood revolves around one remarkable activity: minting coins. 

A few metres from today’s metro station stands a vast building stretching 100 metres long: Munthof. Opened in 1880, it houses engraving workshops, foundries and minting presses where coins come to life. 

Of course, Belgian francs are minted here. But not only them. The mint soon earns an international reputation. Before long, it produces coins for more than twenty countries, from Asia to Africa. 

The Munthof transforms the neighbourhood, attracting new residents. Elegant townhouses line the surrounding streets. Shops and cafés follow. The district grows around the mint that gives it its identity. 

Then, in 1976, everything changes. Coin production moves elsewhere. Three years later, the building is demolished. Today, Place Marie Janson occupies the site where millions of coins once began their journey. 

The building is gone, but one reminder remains. Inside the metro station, the old minting press still stands beside your journey. A final echo of the days when coins made in Brussels circulated across the world.