House of the Dragon Easter egg: Director confirms huge Game of Thrones link in episode 3

‘Game of Thrones’ fans may have noticed something familiar about Rhaenyra’s dragon eggs in episode three

*Warning – Spoilers ahead for House of the Dragon, season two, episode three*

The House of the Dragon director has confirmed a major connection to Game of Thrones in the prequel spin-off’s latest episode.

The new series is based on George RR Martin’s book Fire & Blood and takes place roughly 200 years before the events of Thrones.

In the third episode of House of the Dragon’s second series, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) decides to send her youngest children away as war seems inevitable. She tasks Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) with accompanying her sons Aegon and Viserys to the Vale, along with their young dragons Tyraxes and Stormcloud, and four dragon eggs.

Though Rhaena is reluctant to leave, her part in protecting the eggs will play a huge role in the future of Westeros. Three of the eggs – one gold, one green, and one reddish-black – match up with the colors of the eggs Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) receives from Illyrio Mopatis (Roger Allam) in the pilot of Game of Thrones.

“Those are Daenerys’ eggs,” episode three director Geeta Vasant Patel confirmed to Mashable. “All of us who work on this show are big Game of Thrones fans, so it was very exciting to shoot that scene.”

Rhaena (Phoebe Campbell) is sent away to protect four dragon eggs in the third episode of ‘House of the Dragon’, season two (Theo Whiteman/HBO)

Patel’s statement introduces a slight alteration from Martin’s source material. In Fire & Blood, Martin suggests that the dragon eggs found their way to Essos well before the Dance of the Dragons, during Jaehaerys I's reign.

Elissa Farman, a noblewoman and sailor who was romantically involved with Princess Rhaena Targaryen (not the Rhaena in House of the Dragon) took three dragon eggs from Dragonstone and traveled to Braavos. The book states that Farman sold the eggs to the Sealord of Braavos and used the proceeds to finance her seafaring adventures.

Keen-eyed viewers may also have noticed a line in episode three that hinted at the death of a main character from season one.

There have already been several moments where it became clear the prequel will reward readers of George RR Martin’s Fire & Blood, as well as his A Song of Ice and Fire book series. You can find an explanation of Aegon Targaryen’s Song of Ice and Fire prophecy here.

New episodes of House of the Dragon season 2 air on HBO and Max on Sundays at 9pm ET.