Bob Dylan Finally Accepted His Nobel Peace Prize… Whether He Liked It Or Not

While some people might jump for joy or click their heels or scream from the highest mountaintops (or whatever people do when they’re happy) upon learning that they had received the Nobel Peace Prize, Bob Dylan seemed pretty unfazed by the honor when it was announced in October. At first, the poet never even bothered to return the Nobel committee’s calls and emails, finally acknowledging his win a few weeks later, when he said he couldn’t make the celebratory gala in December “due to pre-existing commitments.”

But now it looks like the free-wheelin’ folk legend has got his hands on his prize after all. The Swedish Academy announced that Dylan was awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize for Literature during a concert stopover this weekend in Stockholm, and The Guardian reported on the ceremony.

The private ceremony held only 12 people, with pictures of Dylan showing up with a understated leather jacket, cowboy boots and navy blue hood. “Spirits were high. Champagne was had,” the academy’s secretary said. “Quite a bit of time was spent looking closely at the gold medal, in particular the beautifully crafted back, an image of a young man sitting under a laurel tree who listens to the Muse,” she said.

No matter how demure the ceremony, Dylan is still expected to give a lecture based on the honor — if he fails to do so, he risks losing the $891,000 that comes with prize.

At a Stockholm concert later that night, Dylan made no mention of the Nobel Peace Prize. To be continued…