Born in fire and hammered into brilliance, the Golden Egg of Auletes once glittered in a pharaoh’s court—a treasure crafted for kings and meant for glory. Proud, polished, and certain of its destiny, the egg expected to be adored forever.

It was wrong.

Plucked from its pedestal and sent as tribute to Rome, the egg begins a journey it never desired: stolen by bandits, traded in shadowed dens, and passed from one rough hand to another. Far from palaces and incense, it tumbles through the bowels of a dark Eastern city, learning fear, indignity, and the sharp ache of being forgotten.

Yet even in the dust, the egg discovers unlikely lights: a gentle healer who refuses to bow, a humble cottage filled with wisdom instead of gold, and—at last—a star rising over the world, calling the weary and the wise toward a manger in the West.

Told in luminous octaves of iambic pentameter, The Golden Egg of Auletes blends timeless Christmas storytelling with the artistry of classical verse. Children will delight in its adventure; adults will find deeper shades of meaning glowing beneath the gilded shell.

A tale of pride undone, grace unexpected, and a simple truth learned the hard way: even the finest treasure finds its purpose not in being admired… but in being given.