Damme is the home not only of 13th century author Jacob Van Maerlant, but also of Thyl Ulenspiegel, the popular wag who, at the time of the Counter-Reformation, played practical jokes on the Spanish occupants. Ulenspiegel means "Owl's Mirror", and Thyl is here shown holding up a mirror to three owls. The character appears in Flemish, Belgian-French and German literature.