Amsterdam has reinforced its notoriety in the industry of prostitution with the unveiling of the first-ever statue honoring the controversial industry. The bronze depiction entitled “ Belle” was revealed to the public on the Red Light District's 2 nd Annual Open Day.

The monument is a statue cast in bronze showing a female sex worker filling a doorway at the top of a flight of stairs. The woman stands in lingerie and heels, hands on her hips and her eyes cast out to the world around her. The monument has been placed in front of the Oude Kerk, Amsterdam's oldest church.

The idea for the statue came from Mariska Majoor, the founder of the Prostitution Information Center and a former sex worker herself. Majoor's statue was designed by Dutch artist Els Rijerse and bears the dedication “to all the women and men who work in prostitution around the world.”

“Belle” has been placed in the same square as another statue depicting a hand caressing the breast, one of many statues donated by an unknown artist. Just hours before unveiling “ Belle,” an elderly woman and resident of the neighborhood assaulted Majoor because she was unhappy with the statue being so close to her home. The woman was held in police custody until the statue-unveiling ceremony was finished.