No kidding: Swedish town’s goat decorations burnt again

The burnt out Christmas goat in Gavle, Sweden, Friday Dec. 17, 2021. In what’s become a Christmas tradition to some Swedes, a giant decorative goat made of straw and a smaller one were set ablaze early and police detained a suspect in his 40s. The straw goat is a beloved Christmas symbol in the city of Gavle, a town 163 kilometers north (101 miles) north of Stockholm. However, it’s also become a tradition of sorts to burn it down. (Pernilla Wahlman/TT via AP)

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.

The central square in Gavle (Pernilla Wahlman/TT/AP)

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.