In a sea of gold and with notes of orange blossom in the air, Tina Arena was blown away.
Standing before Marie Antoinette's harp from 1775, the award-winning performer couldn't believe it.
"When I saw the harp I went 'oh my God she was a musician'," she told AAP at the preview of the summer blockbuster exhibition Versailles: Treasures from the Palace on Thursday.
The gilded wood instrument, with pearl and glass beads, is one of more than 130 opulent pieces on loan to the National Gallery of Australia from the famous palace - and sits next to giant portrait of Marie Antoinette.
"She found a lot of solace in her composing and her playing," Arena says, reflecting on the queen's life alongside the "boisterous" Louis XVI.
"She was quite a piece of work actually. A very interesting woman, beautiful woman, with a big heart and it would have been tough being in a very male environment."
Arena, who was the first Australian to receive a French Knighthood of the Order of Merit, is the official ambassador of the exhibition in Canberra.
The role brings together her two homes - Australia and France.
The privilege of sharing different cultures, including her Italian heritage, is one that Arena treasures.
"I work really hard to keep that torch lit," she says.
"My partner and I have worked our backsides off to build this cultural bridge, because we knew that that was the greatest legacy we could leave our little boy."
She credits her parents, who came to Australia with nothing, with helping her realise the honour.
"They're such exquisite examples of fine people who really made a home, but also created - very successfully - a balance between their past and their present."
Lending her support to the gallery's project, Arena notes recent funding cuts to the arts.
"It's very dangerous because it really creates a void of knowledge and you cannot create that cultural void because if you do that you literally do kill a society," she said in her sit-down with AAP.
"So things like this is very important."
It's the first time some of the treasures have left France, with items including a gilded table belonging to Louis XV's eldest son and a marble bust of Louis XIV.
There's also a 1.5 tonne fountain sculpture of Latona and her children in a room which transforms you with the sounds of running water.
While the opulence of gold is a sight for the eyes, a special scent also fills the air.
Master perfumer Francis Kurkdjian, who has a long relationship with the palace, came up with a orange blossom perfume inspired by Louis XIV which is released every two minutes.
"Orange blossom smells a bit like honey and honey is reminiscent of the waxing that we use on the floor in Versailles," he told AAP. "It blends very well."
While the idea of matching a scent with an exhibition is not new in Europe, it is the first time it's been done in Australia, he says.
There's also something for the children, with a French-inspired play space.
"This whole exhibition literally is catered for the entire family," Arena says.
The exhibition opens on Friday and runs until April 17.
