Question 1: Which river flows by Museum Island in Berlin?
- Rhine
- Danube
- Spree
Correct Answer: Spree
Fact: The Spree River makes its way from the Lusatian Highlands through northeastern Germany on an approximately 250-mile stretch, flowing past Museum Island in Berlin before it joins the Havel River.
Question 2: Berlin’s Neues Museum features a famous bust of what historic queen?
- Isabella I
- Marie Antoinette
- Nefertiti
Correct Answer: Nefertiti
Fact: The Nefertiti Bust is a 14th-century BCE sculpture of the Egyptian queen. It is made of limestone and painted stucco. The bust has become a symbol of colonialism due to German refusal to return the piece, which Egypt has been requesting for nearly 100 years.
Question 3: Which then-German chancellor was present at the opening of Museum Island’s central entrance building, the James-Simon-Galerie, in 2019?
- Helmut Kohl
- Gerhard Schröder
- Angela Merkel
Correct Answer: Angela Merkel
Fact: Angela Merkel—chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021—attended the inauguration of the James-Simon-Galerie on July 12, 2019. The museum was designed by David Chipperfield—a British architect—and it serves as the entrance building for Museum Island.