Posted on 09/27/2006 11:37:35 AM PDT by presidio9
Researchers using three-dimensional technology to study the "Mona Lisa" say the woman depicted in Leonardo da Vinci's 16th century masterpiece was either pregnant or had recently given birth when she sat for the painting.
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That was one of many discoveries found by French and Canadian researchers during one of the most extensive physical examinations ever carried out on the artwork.
"Thanks to laser scanning, we were able to uncover the very fine gauze veil Mona Lisa was wearing on her dress. This was something typical for either soon-to-be or new mothers at the time," Michel Menu, research director of the French Museums' Center for Research and Restoration, said Wednesday on LCI television.
Menu said a number of art historians had suggested that she was pregnant or had just given birth.
Researchers have established that the picture was of Lisa Gherardini, wife of obscure Florentine merchant Francesco del Giocond, and that Leonardo started painting it in 1503.
The name "Mona Lisa" is the equivalent of "Madame Lisa." La Joconde, as the painting is referred to in many countries, is the French version of her married name.
The scan revealed depth resolution so detailed it was possible to see differences in the height around the paint surface cracks and in the thickness of the varnish.
"We now have very precise information about the thickness of the layers," Bruno Mottin, of the French restoration center, told reporters in Ottawa, Canada. "We know how the painting is painted, with very thin layers of painting. That's one of the things we couldn't see by the naked eye, and that Canadian technology brought us."
John Taylor of Canada's National Research Council said there were no signs of any brush stroke. "That includes the very fine details of the embroidery on the dress, the hair," he said. "This is the 'je ne sais quoi' of Leonardo. The genius. We don't know how he applied it."
The scan even revealed Leonardo's first conception of Mona Lisa.
"The 3-D imaging was able to detect the incised drawing to provide us with da Vinci's general conception for the composition," said Christian Lahanier, head of the documentation department of the French research center.
The artist brought the painting to France in 1517. It has been in the Louvre Museum since 1804.
The data collected in 16 hours of scanning, starting in 2004, took a year to analyze. It shows warping in the poplar panel Leonardo used as his canvas, but the Mona Lisa smile is not threatened.
"We didn't see any sign of paint lifting," Taylor said. "So for a 500-year-old painting, it's very good news. And if they continue to keep it the way they have in an environment-controlled chamber, it could remain like that for a very long time."
Menu said all the secrets behind the enigmatic painting have yet to be revealed, including Leonardo's techniques.
"We particularly want to understand how he painted his shadows, the famous 'fumato' effect," Menu said.
Good night jean/gene. I have nothing further to discuss with you. And you don't know squat about my military time or anything else.
Alright then.
. . . excuse me, I'm going to go rinse out my eyes with Lysol now.
. . . and Leonardo is up to about 2450 RPM . . .
That is fascinating! I must look out for her tomb at Westminster Abbey on my next visit to London. I think it is so much more impressive than St. Paul's. The history just seeps out of the walls!
Who cares?? People that get grants for this sh**.
Please say a prayer for Anne for me when you are there. :O)
I've always felt Mona Lisa needed eyebrows.<<<<<<<<<<
Yes! She has that Whoopie Goldberg thing going on, and I always got distracted if I saw her in a movie wondering what was up with her eyebrows.
You can't make this stuff up.
A very Merry Christmas to you, too. I was reading about this exhibit in the Telegraph (?), I think. I'm not sure if Anne's portrait is there or not, but the one of Edward VI is, as is the one of his mom Jane Seymour. Henry VIII, too. It looks like a great show.
Note: this topic is from 9/27/2006. Thanks presidio9.
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