Het peerd van Ome Loeks
Visitors arriving in Groningen via the main station are immediately greeted by a quintessentially Groningen work of art: het Peerd van Ome Loeks’. Created in 1959 by artist Jan de Baat, it stands in the centre of the station square.
Have a look now
The story goes that the statue was created as a memorial to the racehorse belonging to a man named Lucas (Loeks) van Hemmen. Loeks was a jockey and the owner of the café and livery stable De Slingerij in Groningen. In 1910, his horse died. When the horse butcher came to collect the animal, a few boys sang: ‘Uncle Loeks’ horse is dead’. This marked the beginning of a well-known Groningen folk tune. Although there are also sources that claim the song is based on a German student song.