For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.

While characters resembling Santa Claus have circulated throughout the world for centuries, the notion of a sleigh pulled by reindeer wouldn’t become prominent until the 19th century.

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.A report from ...

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.A report from ...

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong.A report from ...

For generations, many have pictured Santa’s reindeer as antlered bucks guiding his sleigh through the Christmas Eve sky. But archival evidence suggests we may have it all wrong. A report from 2003 ...