|
1503-1506 - Oil on wood
77 x 53 cm (30 x 20 7/8 in.)
The Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the
history of art and continues to inspire
reproduction, parody, scientific theory, and
more. The painting has achieved celebrity status
and is continually appearing as subject of news
articles around the globe.
The history of the Mona Lisa is
shrouded in mystery. Among the aspects which
remain unclear are the exact identity of the
sitter, who commissioned the portrait, how long
Leonardo worked on the painting, how long he
kept it, and how it came to be in the French
royal collection.
The portrait may have been painted to mark one
of two events - either when Francesco del
Giocondo and his wife bought their own house in
1503, or when their second son, Andrea, was born
in December 1502 after the death of a daughter
in 1499. The delicate dark veil that covers Mona
Lisa's hair is sometimes considered a mourning
veil. In fact, such veils were commonly worn as
a mark of virtue. Her clothing is unremarkable.
Neither the yellow sleeves of her gown, nor her
pleated gown, nor the scarf delicately draped
round her shoulders are signs of aristocratic
status.
On
August 21st, 1911, someone stole the most famous
painting in the world from the Louve. According
to author Seymour Reit, "Someone walked into the
Salon Carré, lifted it off the wall and went out
with it! The painting was stolen Monday morning,
but the interesting thing about it was that it
wasn't 'til Tuesday at noon that they first
realized it was gone." -PBS
The painting was recovered in November of 1913
just blocks from the Louve
|
