Who was the Mona Lisa?

Everyone Knows Her Half-Smile, Now Who was She?

The Mona Lisa is a painting by famed artist Leonardo Da Vinci. Most probably known for her half smile, the faraway gaze, and the almost stoic features of what is assumed by most to be the woman subject of Da Vinci's painting, there is speculation about exactly who the model for Da Vinci's Mona Lisa was.

Some have believed the portrait to be a self portrait of Da Vinci he feminized, most historians have invalidated this theory. There is as striking resemblance between the portrait of Mona Lisa and Da Vinci's own self-portrait. This is mostly attributed to the fact that Da Vinci painted both portraits, rather than the fact that both portrait subjects were the same model.

Amidst this speculation comes a book entitled The Mystery of the Mona Lisa, by Rina de' Firenze. This book speculates that the portrait Da Vinci painted was actually that of his own mother, Caterina. While this book is fiction, it has an historically accurate setting with an interesting tale of one author's idea of Da Vinci's life, through his mother's eyes.

One website that speculates about the origins of the Mona Lisa allows users to provide their own possible answers to the mysteries behind the Mona Lisa, some of which include: Leonardo Da Vinci's grandmother, Da Vinci's mother, Da Vinci himself, and a lady from the street Da Vinci picked at random.

On another website about Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, there was commentary that believed Mona Lisa was really the same woman in the painting of the Last Supper, the woman some believe who is next to Jesus in the painting, whom some also believe is Mary Magdalene, and that this portrait was painted after Jesus' crucifixion, when Mary Magdalene fled for safety. Of course, then there is the ensuing discussion of whether Jesus and Mary were married, which this article won't even touch upon.