A midday walk through the colorful market square of Poznań in central
Poland
means vibrantly painted buildings, bustling cafes, food stalls and
vendors—and throngs of locals and tourists jostling for the best spot to
watch a 465-year-old fight. It just happens to be between a couple of
mechanical goats.
At the heart of the square is Poznań’s Town Hall, topped by three
turrets with a clock tower in the middle. As the time inches towards
noon the assembled crowd waits for the bell to toll, craning their necks
to watch two iron billy goats glide out and face each other. As they
have done since the year 1551, the goats butt heads twelve times to
strike the midday hour.
It’s a lovely tradition, with an unexpected origin story.
Back in the middle of the 16th century there was a chef in town (some
versions call him “Pete”) who was charged with cooking an elaborate
feast for the mayor and some visiting dignitaries. Pete set about
preparing some roast deer, but things didn’t go so well. Distracted by
the festivities of the big event, his beautiful joint of venison ended
up falling off the spit, straight into the fire, burning to a crisp.
Pete needed some new meat, but the butcher had no more venison. In a
desperate move to save the meal (and his own neck) he grabbed two
grazing goats from a nearby meadow, but they escaped his grasp and
darted off towards Town Hall. They ran up the stairs into the tower,
catching the attention of the crowd below when they emerged from the
turret, locked horns and began to battle it out. The crowd included the
mayor and his guests, who were more charmed than they were angry about
the meal, so Pete and the goats were pardoned.
A new clock was in the works for the Town Hall, so the mayor ordered
that two goats be added to the mechanism, cuckoo clock style. They’ve
been taking noonday center stage ever since. Luckily for the crowds down
below it’s always a draw, so they’ll be back again tomorrow to fight
another day.
Poznań is in west-central Poland, about 100 miles east of the German
border and 185 miles west of Warsaw. The goats emerge to fight every day
at noon in front of the entrance to the Town Hall. There is also a live
trumpet call just before the hour strikes, a good reminder to stop and
look up.
seattlepi
