And so Sebastian Morra became Don Sebastian de Morra – born 1610, died 1672 – court dwarf for Philip IV of Spain, painted by Diego Velazquez circa 1645. Known today only as an image in a gallery on the first floor of the Prado in Madrid, he hangs among more illustrious subjects – the King of Spain, Isabella of Bourbon, the Count-Duke of Olivares and the god Mars. But amid all those great portraits, his is the one that catches the eye.

His face stops passers-by, as they find themselves confronted by thick and steepled eyebrows from under which black irises glower, refusing to be ignored. He makes no effort to impress – unbuttoned, his robes hang dishevelled while his beard has been left untrimmed. It doesn’t interest him that he is being immortalised by the greatest painter in Spain, or that his image may one day be seen by millions. He knows why he is being painted ­– because he is regarded as a freak of nature without any purpose beyond the entertainment of others.

So he sits, meeting every stare that has settled upon him since, always responding with the same brutal truth.

‘I may be a dwarf, but I am a greater man than you.’