This shot (taken from a moving bus) is of King Puck, the most famous goat in Ireland. Every year a wild goat is
caught and crowned king in Killorglin, Ireland, as part of the oldest festival in Europe, dating to the early 1600s (and
possibly earlier). As with nearly every tradition in Ireland, there are competing stories. The more boring (and hence
more likely to be true) is that the goat was a symbol of fertility and the celebration dates from pagan times. The more
colorful tale is that one day a heard of wild goats from the mountains came stampeding through town, a sight which
had never before been seen. Several men went up to the mountains to see what could be causing this. They beheld
Cromwell's army, destroying everyone and everything it their path. The villagers immediately abandoned the town.
When the army marched into the abandoned town they didn't know what to make of it so they left without putting it to
the torch. This story claims that In gratitude the villagers started the annual celebration. Whatever the cause, over
100,000 celebrants get plastered every year in honor of a goat.
caught and crowned king in Killorglin, Ireland, as part of the oldest festival in Europe, dating to the early 1600s (and
possibly earlier). As with nearly every tradition in Ireland, there are competing stories. The more boring (and hence
more likely to be true) is that the goat was a symbol of fertility and the celebration dates from pagan times. The more
colorful tale is that one day a heard of wild goats from the mountains came stampeding through town, a sight which
had never before been seen. Several men went up to the mountains to see what could be causing this. They beheld
Cromwell's army, destroying everyone and everything it their path. The villagers immediately abandoned the town.
When the army marched into the abandoned town they didn't know what to make of it so they left without putting it to
the torch. This story claims that In gratitude the villagers started the annual celebration. Whatever the cause, over
100,000 celebrants get plastered every year in honor of a goat.