No kidding: Swedish town’s goat decorations burnt again
17 December 2021, 14:14
Since Gavle’s first straw goat was erected in 1966, the annual Christmas decoration has been burnt or smashed dozens of times.
The two straw goats of Gavle, Sweden’s most endangered Christmas decorations, have gone up in flames after surviving nearly a month in a central square.
Goats are a beloved Swedish Christmas symbol dating back to pagan times, but in what has become a tradition of sorts in Gavle, 100 miles north of Stockholm, arsonists destroyed a giant decorative goat made of straw and a smaller sibling.
Only the metal frames were left standing.
A suspect in his 40s was detained.
Police said the man allegedly had soot on his hands and matched a description given by witnesses, who said the fire started in the small goat before spreading to the larger one.
Since Gavle’s first straw goat — 43ft feet tall and weighing three tons — was erected in 1966, the annual decoration has been burnt or smashed dozens of times, once before it was even finished.
The last time arsonists struck was in 2016, but a record four-year period of peace was shattered on Friday.
The goat is an ancient Scandinavian Yuletide symbol that preceded Santa Claus as the bringer of gifts.
