Chapter 1
Death came to Leonardo on May 2, 1519. It has been theorized that King Francis I cradled Leonardo’s head as he died.
Leonardo was the illegitimate son of the 25-year-old Ser Piero, a man of means. It is theorized that his Mother was named Caterina, a peasant girl. It is also theorized that she soon married an artisan. Maybe Leonardo inherited his Mothers love of art.
Mona Lisa was found in Leonardo’s studio after his death. It is believed he worked on it over several years. He added multiple layers of thin oil glazes at different times. Small cracks appear throughout the painting. They are finer on the hands where thinner glazes were applied.
Mona Lisa, one of two of Leonardo’s most famous paintings, was part of the Royal collection. For centuries it was secluded in French Palaces. It became the property of the French people during the French Revolution, 1787-1789.
It has been theorized that Mona Lisa was to be given to the Man who commissioned it, Frances del Giocondo, as a portrait of his wife Lisa Gherardini. But Leonardo held on to this. Being an artist, maybe Leonardo was never satisfied with it.
The three-quarter view of Mona Lisa broke from the standard profile pose. This quickly became the standard for all portraits continuing into our present time.
It is theorized that Mona Lisa is Leonardo himself dressed as a woman. In another theory it is of his good friend and suspected lover Giacomo Caprotti. As stated before it may also be Lisa Gherardini. No one knows for sure.
It has been theorized the Mona Lisa smile is a recovered memory of Leonardo’s Mother’s smile. But his Father took Leonardo soon after his birth so this is theory only.
In 1911 Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre. Vincenzo Peruggia stole it. In 1913 he was caught and the painting returned.
During World War Two Mona Lisa was evacuated to various locations in the French countryside. This was done to prevent theft or destruction.
Mona Lisa shows evidence of warping from resistance to its original frame, braces were added by early restorers. Dovetails were added to prevent a small crack from widening and later pasted to heavy canvas to replace the top Dovetail. In1809 cleaning and re-varnishing resulted in a washed-out appearance to the face of Mona Lisa. Great care has been taken not to further damage the painting.
The theory of The Da Vinci code, is that Jesus married and bore children with Mary Magdalene. His descendants live today and may have mysterious powers.
And lastly a completely strange theory, in recent years it has been theorized that Leonardo was influenced by other worldly Beings. Some theorize it is of a higher intelligence, others Beings from other worlds. Aliens from other dimensions or other planets? crazy but who knows.
MONA LISA, MONA LISA MEN HAVE NAMED YOU'RE SO LIKE THE LADY WITH THE MYSTIC SMILE (Nat King Cole).
