Lessines, population 17,000, is located on the
Dender River, twenty-five kilometers northwest of
Mons. Surrealist painter Rene Magritte was born in Lessines. The city's old Hospital, founded in 1242, has been transformed into an art museum featuring works of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Bois-de-Lessines (Lessenbos), Deux-Acren (Twee Akren), Ghoy, Ogy, Ollignies (Woelingen), Papegem (Papignies), and Wannebecq are boroughs within the municipal district of Lessines.