Golden child

What does the phrase "golden child" mean, and orgin please?

I have usually heard "golden boy," occasionally "golden girl," rather than "golden child." I have taken it to mean a boy or girl so favored by nature as to be almost guaranteed success and popularity. As for origins, I know only that it was heard often in the previous century, at least in writing. The phrase "golden boy" can also be used for men, sometimes in an invidious way. SS