Mystery Of The Mona Lisa Solved After Five Centuries: Scholars

It’s one of the longest and most enduring mysteries in history – who was the model who posed for the Mona Lisa, arguably the most famous painting in the world? For centuries speculation has raged about the identity of the woman with the half smile. And now German researchers claim to have found the definitive answer to the question.

The candidates were many, including Lisa Gherardini, the wife of a wealthy Florentine merchant named Francesco del Giocondo. Others have suggested artist Leonardo da Vinci’s mother, his lover or even a wryly disguised version of his own likeness.

But the experts at the University of Heidelberg say they’ve solved the mystery once and for all with the discovery of some long ignored notations scribbled in a book owned by a friend of the artist in 1503 – the date the artwork was believed to have been painted. And they definitively point to del Giocondo’s wife as being the model for Mona.

The notes are from a Florentine official and indicate da Vinci was working on three paintings at the time – including one that was a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo.

“All doubts about the identity of the Mona Lisa have been eliminated by a discovery by [manuscript expert] Dr. Armin Schlechter,” a university statement assures. Art experts agree the findings appear to be the real thing and are the earliest mentions of the woman and the work known to exist, potentially ending a puzzle that’s raged for more than 500 years.

“There is no reason for any lingering doubts that this is another woman,” Leipzig University art historian Frank Zoellner maintains. “One could even say that books written about all this in the past few years were unnecessary, had we known.”

The Mona Lisa – sometimes also known as “La Gioconda”, another possible tip-off about its famous subject – remains on display under heavy glass and heavy guard at the Louvre in Paris. It may be smaller in person than most art lovers expect, but it’s always been larger than life in its reputation.

To take a virtual tour of the Mona Lisa display at the museum, click here.

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