Added to the Market Square around 1240, when Bruges was prospering as an important centre of the Flemish cloth industry, the belfry of Bruges, or Belfort, is one of the city's most prominent symbols. It formerly housed a treasury and the municipal archives, and served as an observation post for spotting fires and other danger. In the middle of the Market Square stands a statue of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, historical figures from Flanders' past. A narrow, steep staircase of 366 steps leads to the top of the 83m-high building, which leans about a metre to the east.
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