IGX

The 13-metre-tall, 3.6 tonne straw goat in Gävle, central Sweden was launched for the year’s festival period on Sunday afternoon. But by 11pm it was engulfed in flames. “There will be a great, great sadness for Gävle residents, the Gävle goat and for all of its fans over the world,” Maria Wallberg, a spokesperson for the goat’s organizers told news agency TT.

The huge yule goat is built every year in Gävle’s Slottstorget square, and there is enough hype for the build-up to be shown live on Swedish web TV channels. The goat also has a degree of international fame – thanks in no small part to the tradition of someone destroying it, year after year, most commonly through the use of fire.