The Christmas goat effigy was erected on Sunday from hay, it took arsonists less than a day to burn it to the ground.
The Christmas goat is put up every year in the Swedish town of Gavle, but it is a popular target for arsonists - this is the 35th time in 50 years that it has been destroyed.
Despite increased security, including CCTV monitoring, vandals still were able to destroy the goat.
Earlier, town officials said they would keep the goat effigy under tight guard.
"We'll have more guards," local council official Helen Akerlind told Swedish newspaper Gefle Dagblad.
"We're going to have a 'goat guarantee' the first weekend."
But it appears the arsonists snuck into the exhibit area when a security guard went to the toilet.
Police have launched an investigation to find the culprit, but there have so far been no arrests.
The town of Gavle has promised to erect a new goat effigy next year.
