Mona Lisa's Wild Journey: From Royal Bathroom to War Ambulance
What Happened: A Painting’s Perilous Path
Leonardo da Vinci began painting the Mona Lisa in his Florence studio in 1503 as a commissioned portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of Florentine merchant Francesco del Giocondo. But what happened next reads like an adventure novel.
After da Vinci’s death in 1519, King Francis I of France acquired the painting, making it property of the French Republic. The king chose an unusual spot for his prized artwork: his royal bathroom. Throughout much of the 16th century, the Mona Lisa hung in the steamy royal apartments, where constant moisture from baths damaged the paint and altered its colors, requiring restoration.