Mona Lisa’s ‘twin sister’ is discovered – 500 years late

 

by Nick Clark (The Independent)
Sensational find in Madrid’s Prado museum rewrites the history of art

 

The Mona Lisa at the Prado in Madrid was thought to be just

another fine copy, with added eyebrows and an odd black background.

But curators at Spain’s national art museum yesterday announced a

startling discovery: the painting was actually executed by an

artist in Leonardo da Vinci’s workshop at the same time as the

original.

 

It is the first known copy of the most famous painting in history, and a discovery that curators believe sheds new light on the creation of the masterpiece.

 

Deputy conservator, Gabriele Finaldi, said: “It’s as if we were standing in the workshop itself, and at the next easel. You can see that the artist was working step by step with Leonardo. When Leonardo made a change, he made a change.”

 

The copy sits in a dimly-lit room awaiting the finishing touches of a two-year restoration, during which its true origin was revealed….

 

Click here for the complete story.

 

 

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