Paradoxically, I didn’t photograph the most famous exhibit of the Neue Museum. Like the Mona Lisa, Queen Nefertiti has her own special room, a space that has a beauty in itself.

The artistry of this bust is unsurpassable, with fine sculpting that is befitting of the Queen’s delicate fine boned face.

What did the artist convey about the Queen? Clearly the beauty for which Nefertiti is famous. Yet what surprised me was my perception of strain in her features. She seemed not serene but slightly drawn.

Perhaps there is sense of vulnerability too – such a tiny person, though not in her time. Walking through the Museum showed me this; warrior’s helmets that looked far too small for a male head and small sacophagi containing adult bodies. We humans are larger now.