Leonardo da Vinci

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&#39;Sister&#39; Mona Lisa Found
 'Sister' Mona Lisa Found 
Feb 2, 2012 12:40 AM CST

'Sister' Mona Lisa Found

Experts believe copy was painted by artist working alongside da Vinci

(Newser) - A stunning art find means that we can now see what Mona Lisa really looked like, say experts at Madrid's Prado Museum. The museum's researchers found that a painting in its vaults long thought to have been just one of dozens of replicas of Leonardo da Vinci's...

At Louvre, a Brawl Over a da Vinci

Some argue Leonardo's masterpiece was 'overcleaned'

(Newser) - Who knew art historians could duke it out like this? The Louvre finds itself embroiled in a big brouhaha regarding its recent restoration of a Leonardo da Vinci painting. Two of France's preeminent art experts, who sit on the museum's 20-person committee tasked with overseeing art restoration, have...

Did 'Lost' Da Vinci Sell for Only $21K?

Mystery endures for portrait

(Newser) - Christie's auction house let a "lost" Leonardo Da Vinci portrait fly out the door for a mere $21,000, according to some art experts. The portrait was from a 500-year-old book about the duke of Milan and likely features an illegitimate daughter, according to Oxford art historian Martin...

Long-Lost Leonardo Painting Resurfaces

First major da Vinci discovery in a century

(Newser) - For the first time in a century, a major “new” Leonardo da Vinci piece has emerged. This time, it’s a painting called “Salvatore Mundi,” discovered in a private American collection and confirmed as the master’s work. It’s a long-missing painting that once belonged to...

Team to Unearth Bones... of Mona Lisa?

'CSI art researchers' aim to find out who she is once and for all

(Newser) - Florence researchers are about to excavate the bones of the woman they believe served as the model for Mona Lisa. Their hope is that facial reconstruction will prove once and for all if Lisa Gherardini was the subject of the Leonardo da Vinci portrait that has mesmerized viewers for centuries....

Mona Lisa Was Da Vinci's Gay Lover: Expert

Boy apprentice featured in other paintings, erotic sketches

(Newser) - No wonder she has such a mysterious smile: the lady was a scamp. Mona Lisa isn't the portrait of a local merchant's wife, but was inspired instead by a beautiful boy apprentice who later became Leonardo da Vinci's lover, argues an art expert. Silvano Vinceti, the head of an Italian...

Art Historian Identifies Mona Lisa's Home Town

Bobbio, Italy, depicted in background

(Newser) - Bobbio, Italy, should probably brace itself for a wave of tourists. Art historian Carla Glori has identified the tiny northern town as the place depicted in the background of the Mona Lisa, based on a numerical code hidden within the painting. In the past, many assumed the background was plucked...

Hidden Mona Lisa 'Code' Could Reveal Her True Identity

Real-life Da Vinci Code plays out in Italy

(Newser) - Want to know the true identity of the Mona Lisa? Just look deep into her eyes. Art historians have discovered miniscule numbers and letters painted there, and believe they might give a clue as to who sat for Leonardo Da Vinci's 500-year-old masterpiece. A group in Italy magnified high resolution...

Leonardo-Inspired Pedal Plane Flaps Wings and Flies

Canadian grad student provides the power

(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci drew the first man-powered ornithopter over 5 centuries ago, and the concept has finally become reality. A University of Toronto engineering PhD candidate took the very flight in an aircraft called "Snowbird," which has a 105-foot wingspan and weighs only 94 pounds. He pedaled to...

X-Rays Reveal Da Vinci Technique on Mona Lisa

He used amazingly thin layers to achieve 3-D effect

(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci created the intricate shadows on the Mona Lisa's face by using a meticulous technique called sfumato that results in thin layers of oil and resins, new X-rays of the painting reveal. Da Vinci took the technique to new extremes: His 30 or so layers added a tiny...

Mona Lisa Suffered Sky-High Cholesterol

Pathologist identifies sick subjects of the Renaissance

(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci's model for the Mona Lisa was smiling despite some serious health problems, according to an Italian pathologist applying his knowledge to Renaissance painting. Professor Vito Franco of the University of Palermo says a tumor on her hand and apparent buildups of fatty acids around her eyes show...

Experts Buzzing Over 'New' Da Vinci in Boston

Museum said to be appraising previously unknown painting

(Newser) - A last-minute contender for art find of the decade may have turned up in Boston's Museum of Fine Arts, but officials are remaining tight-lipped about the possibly stupendous discovery. Rumors are spreading that the museum has a previously unknown Leonardo da Vinci painting in its possession. Fewer than 20 da...

Fresco Clue Launches Hunt for Lost Da Vinci

Artist's greatest work may be hidden behind palace fresco

(Newser) - Like a mystery straight from the Da Vinci Code, an Italian palace fresco harbors a clue pointing to the existence of a hidden masterpiece, claims an art expert. Now Italian professor Maurizio Seracini has been granted permission to seek the painting considered Leonardo da Vinci's greatest work. Seracini believes the...

Da Vinci Fingerprint IDs Lost Painting

15th-century portrait hailed as most important Da Vinci find in a century

(Newser) - A painting bought for $19,000 by a Canadian dealer two years ago has been valued at $150 million after it was determined to be a work by Leonardo Da Vinci. Carbon dating and infrared techniques convinced experts that the portrait on vellum was a genuine Da Vinci. The final...

Angry Russian Hurls Cup at Mona Lisa

Really, really miffed that she was denied citizenship

(Newser) - A Russian woman distressed that France had refused to grant her nationality took out her frustration on a defenseless national treasure, Reuters reports. “The woman threw an empty cup at the Mona Lisa, but there was no damage as the cup smashed when it hit the screen protecting the...

Louvre May Have Found New Leonardo Sketches

Three drawings found on back of painting

(Newser) - Curators from the Louvre have discovered three sketches on the back of Leonardo da Vinci’s oil painting "Virgin And Child With St Anne" that may be by the master himself, the AFP reports. Museum workers noticed two barely visible sketches, of a horse’s head and a human...

Leonardo Lifted from Chinese, Historian Claims

Popular amateur says texts brought to Italy 'ignited Renaissance'

(Newser) - Leonardo da Vinci’s renowned mechanical drawings were derived from Chinese originals brought to Europe decades before he was born, a British amateur historian contends in a new book. “This was the spark that really ignited the Renaissance,” Gavin Menzies tells Reuters, a claim that could force “...

Old Chess Guide May Have Drawings From Da Vinci

500-year-old book of puzzles has illustrations in the master's style

(Newser) - Sections of a recently unearthed manuscript, dating back to about 1500 and describing chess strategy, were likely illustrated by Leonardo da Vinci, the BBC reports. The book, De ludo scacchorum, is a collection of puzzles by Italian mathematician and Franciscan friar Luca Pacioli, a friend of da Vinci's. The striking...

Mona Lisa Mystery Solved
Mona Lisa Mystery Solved
Jan 15, 2008 9:50 AM CST

Mona Lisa Mystery Solved

Note from Leonardo contemporary clears up mystery

(Newser) - The true identity of Mona Lisa has puzzled art historians for centuries. A wealthy merchant's wife called Lisa was the obvious candidate, but speculation persisted that the woman with the come-hither smile was Leonardo da Vinci's mother, his lover, or even Leonardo himself. Now German experts say they've solved the...

Mold Ravages Da Vinci Codex
Mold Ravages Da Vinci Codex
Dec 22, 2007 8:04 AM CST

Mold Ravages Da Vinci Codex

Damage wrought for lack of restoration funding

(Newser) - An onslaught of red, black, and purple mold has turned the Codex Atlanticus, the largest collection of writings and drawings by Leonardo Da Vinci, into a "precious sick patient," the Times of London reports. The mold, discovered by an American scholar, is attacking 12,000 codex sheets at...

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