´óÏó´«Ã½

Beautiful, fragile, mysterious – we have always loved birds' eggs. Their colours are more of a hue, the patterning gorgeous to the eye, no wonder they have been collected from time immemorial.

Eggs are a symbol of new life, a transformation that speaks to us of great truths beyond the purely biological. Easter eggs are a symbol of Christ's resurrection and were adopted from pagan beliefs about Ostara, the goddess connecting to various German Easter festivities. The egg has been used as a metaphor for the origin of the universe in many traditions. We have used them in cooking – or eaten raw - since our time on earth.

We have used the hard shell for decoration, and Faberge designed exquisite bejewelled eggs of gold and precious stones for the Tsars of Russia. A peculiar tradition of using eggs to record the varied faces of clowns arose just after World War Two when new clowns stamped their identity on the world by registering their unique features on eggs – there is now a clown egg museum.

The natural variety in bird's eggs, even in clutches from the same year, can be very different and is prized by collectors determined to own the greatest diversity of any one species. Along with collecting comes money and then fraud.

Pleasing to hold, beautiful on the eye, versatile in cooking, intriguing in nature, practical as well - eggs will always inspire us.

Podcast available in the UK for 30 days.