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The painting commonly known as the Mona Lisa was painted between 1503 and 1506 in Florence, Italy, by Leonardo da Vinci. It is painted in oils on a panel of poplar wood. This painting may well be considered the most famous in the world. The subject’s smile– variously described as enigmatic, serene, secretive, and seductive—has been duplicated and parodied relentlessly during the past five hundred years.

The painting is probably a portrait of Lisa Gheradini, commissioned by her husband, a cloth merchant from Florence, but it was never delivered to them. Instead, it was sent to France by Da Vinci shortly after it was completed. Following Di Vinci’s death, the portrait was returned to Italy briefly before it was acquired by French king Francois I. Through the French government, the piece eventually became a part of Le Musée du Louvre’s collection, thus acquiring the seal or official stamp on back Mona Lisa which identifies it as property of the Louvre museum in Paris.

A very rare photograph of the back of the Mona Lisa painting, showing the reinforcing strips of wood

This official stamp on back of Mona Lisa was essential in the identification of the painting in 1913 when the work was rediscovered after its disappearance from Le Louvre in 1911. This theft occurred on the morning of August 21, 1911, though it was not discovered until the following afternoon. The Mona Lisa was kept in a protective box-like frame, but the frame did not prevent the thief from removing the painting from the wall and walking away with it. The frame itself was later found discarded in a hallway, with the thief’s thumbprint preserved on the glass.

Vincenzo Perrugia after his arrest

While investigators immediately suspected many menials and craftsmen who worked for Le Louvre, they did not investigate the man who had constructed the protective box frame himself, an Italian patriot named Vincenzo Perugia. Perugia was indeed the thief; he kept the painting in his lodgings two blocks from Le Louvre for two years before removing it to Italy. When he then attempted to sell it to an Italian collector, with the stipulation that the painting remain in its homeland, the collector turned the painting over and saw the official stamp on back. Mona Lisa was found and the collector reported the criminal to the proper authorities. After being taken across Italy on a special tour so that the Italian population could view the painting, the Mona Lisa was returned to Paris where it has remained except when hidden away during World War II.

A close-up infared image of the paint from the Mona Lisa. This was used to verify the date and authenticity of the stolen painting after it had been recovered

Curators are concerned by the disintegration of the painting over time. The back of the painting now reveals not only the official stamp, but also reinforcing strips of wood and a dove-tailed wood patch which is intended to repress further cracking near the top center of the painting. Recent examination of the edges of the work (where the paint has been protected by the wooden frame) indicates that many layers of aging varnish have altered the original colors of the painting. The sober tones of the subject’s skin, gown, and the landscape behind her were undoubtedly brighter when the portrait was originally painted.

A copy of the Mona Lisa held in the Walters Gallery. This may show the original Mona Lisa’s colour more accurately, as although it is almost the same age, it has not been subjected to the same enviromental damage as the original. Notice the sky appears bluer, the skin and hair are lighter, and there is a clear distinction between the nearer and more distant background colouration.

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