The Mona Lisa
The face in Leonardo’s painting Mona Lisa is probably the most well known in the world. She was painted in the early 1500s by Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci.
The subject of the portrait was a young woman from city of Florence, Italy. At age 16, Mona Lisa married Francesco del Gioconda – a wealthy merchant 19 years old her senior.
When Gioconda asked da Vinci to paint his young wife, the artist was struck by the woman’s beauty, so he agreed.
The most intriguing part of the Mona Lisa is her smile. This has been explained as resulting from everything from bad teeth to pregnancy to a lingering illness to a polite reaction to Leonardo’s lame jokes. Some said she was listening to music.
Another fascination for Leonardo scholars is the landscape behind Mona Lisa. A glance will show that the two side area not the same.
The Mona Lisa has a hard life. After Leonardo died, she eventually became the property of the kings of France.
After the Revolution, she hung in Napoleon’s bedroom. In 1804 she was placed in the Louvre.
Somewhere along the way she was cut down and the two columns flanking the woman were removed. In 1911, she was stolen and taken to Florence, where she was recovered ion 1913.
In 1956 she was attacked and slashed.
Toady Mon Lisa is in the Grand Gallery of the Louvre in an alcove on the right side, hiding behind bullet proof glass.
The Mona Lisa has been an inspiration to musicians, Composer Max von Schillings wrote an opera about the paining.
In 1958, American songwriters Livingston and Evans wrote a hit song about the portrait. Its lyrics ask if Mona Lisa smiles to “hide a broken heart.”
The Mona Lisa
The face in Leonardo’s painting Mona Lisa is probably the most well known in the world. She was painted in the early 1500s by Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci.
The subject of the portrait was a young woman from city of Florence, Italy. At age 16, Mona Lisa married Francesco del Gioconda – a wealthy merchant 19 years old her senior.
When Gioconda asked da Vinci to paint his young wife, the artist was struck by the woman’s beauty, so he agreed.
The most intriguing part of the Mona Lisa is her smile. This has been explained as resulting from everything from bad teeth to pregnancy to a lingering illness to a polite reaction to Leonardo’s lame jokes. Some said she was listening to music.
Another fascination for Leonardo scholars is the landscape behind Mona Lisa. A glance will show that the two side area not the same.
The Mona Lisa has a hard life. After Leonardo died, she eventually became the property of the kings of France.
After the Revolution, she hung in Napoleon’s bedroom. In 1804 she was placed in the Louvre.
Somewhere along the way she was cut down and the two columns flanking the woman were removed. In 1911, she was stolen and taken to Florence, where she was recovered ion 1913.
In 1956 she was attacked and slashed.
Toady Mon Lisa is in the Grand Gallery of the Louvre in an alcove on the right side, hiding behind bullet proof glass.
The Mona Lisa has been an inspiration to musicians, Composer Max von Schillings wrote an opera about the paining.
In 1958, American songwriters Livingston and Evans wrote a hit song about the portrait. Its lyrics ask if Mona Lisa smiles to “hide a broken heart.”
The Mona Lisa
