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Can someone help me identify a building in the background of this old photo (or at least a geographic location of this place, if this building does not exist anymore):

enter image description here

All I know, is that this picutre was taken in Belgium (most likely in Brussels), somewhere around 1944.

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  • 2
    This question should belong to history se
    – Him
    Feb 5, 2016 at 12:36
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    This is a prototypical identify-this question and IMHO belongs on Travel. Voting to leave open.
    – JoErNanO ♦
    Feb 5, 2016 at 12:57
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    Are any of the signs legible on the original photograph? How about the soldier's uniform? Do you know what army or unit he belonged to? How certain are you of the date on which the photograph was taken, or that it was in fact taken in Belgium?
    – phoog
    Feb 5, 2016 at 16:31
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    The only help I can offer is that it's a broad road - probably a major junction, but probably not an open plaza, as he's standing on flagstones (pavement?) and the area behind him is cobbled (road). There are also tramlines, so if you can find a contemporary map of where the trams ran, it might help narrow down possible locations.
    – Andrew is gone
    Feb 5, 2016 at 21:07
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    @Andrew I also found that looking on Google maps street view reveals almost no buildings of that height and vintage in Brussels. So it might be in a part of the city I couldn't find, or it might be in a part of the city that has been rebuilt since the war.
    – phoog
    Feb 5, 2016 at 21:11

1 Answer 1

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It's Hôtel Le Dôme, Place Rogier, Brussels, Belgium.

enter image description here

You can see this building on Google Street view - pretty much the same today as it was in the photo.

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    Well done - very impressed!
    – Andrew is gone
    Feb 6, 2016 at 0:23
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    +1, props and admiration for your research and timely answer. And thanks for the street view link!
    – Gayot Fow
    Feb 6, 2016 at 5:55
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    Travel.SE is extremely impressive - not a single 'identify-this' request went unanswered!
    – JonathanReez ♦
    Feb 6, 2016 at 10:50
  • Man, if only the camera had been slightly higher, the words "Hotel Le Dome" would have appeared in the original photo and everything would have been so much easier.
    – David Richerby
    Feb 11, 2017 at 20:14
  • It looks like the Drug Opera building but I don't see the sign so I guess not.
    – MrBoJangles
    Jan 22, 2021 at 19:35

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