Description

The Mona Lisa is also known as Portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo, or La Gioconda and as well as being one of Leonardo da Vinci’s favorite artworks, it remains the most famous painting in the world. The artist carried the Mona Lisa with him until he died and was clearly aware of its significance. After the painting was produced there were questions raised about the identity of the sitter. While most people agreed that it was Mona Lisa Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo, a Florentine silk merchant, a lot of people proposed it was, in fact, a self-portrait, and the facial features resemble a later self-portrait by Leonardo. In 1911 the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris by a former employee. After two years the work was safely returned to its original home.