I pointed to the third shelf of the glass case. It had caught my eye as I had spun around.

“That. Can I see that?”

The clerk moved around to the left side of the case, and pulled out an oversized keyring. After fumbling with four of the keys before finding the proper one, the side glass was opened.

She carefully picked up the item I had indicated. She was appropriately gentle as she held it in one hand and carefully closed the case with the other. I guess she presumed she wasn’t going to have to put it back.

“Be careful. You drop it or break it, it’s yours.”

She handed it to me with the same care that she had used in picking it up. I held out both my hands, carefully cradling this unusual treasure.

Although I couldn’t measure it, I felt that for some reason, this thing, whatever it could be called, was slightly warm to the touch. Perhaps it was just that it had been in the sun, sitting there in that case. But it was definitely not entirely at room temperature.

If only I had noticed that sooner.