
Mona Lisa is the most famous painting of the Musée du Louvre - and is estimated to attract over 8 million visitors a year!




It represents Lisa del Giocondo, a 16th-century noblewoman from Florence.
The portrait was commissioned by her husband, a wealthy silk merchant and politician.
It is particularly famous for her enigmatic smile and her stare - which seem to follow the viewer around the room.

But did you notice that she doesn’t have any eyebrows?
These were removed in the 16th century, when it was fashionable to shave them off!





Da Vinci took the painting with him when he moved to King Francis' I court in France, and kept it for himself until his death.
It was then bought by the king and became part of several famous private collections - both Louis XIV and Napoleon's wife, Josephine, had it in their apartments.


Fun fact : in 1919 Marcel Duchamp thought the painting had an erotic side to it.
He cheekily added a moustache and the letters "L.H.O.O.Q" to his version, which, in French, reads "Elle a chaud au cul" - meaning "Her ass is on fire"!

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