Mona Lisa (Portrait of Lisa Gherardini)
Painting on poplar wood panel • Leonardo da Vinci
Style & Movement
High Renaissance
Medium & Technique
Oil paint on poplar panel using sfumato (smoky blending) and chiaroscuro (light/dark contrast) techniques.
Creation Period
c. 1503–1506, with potential continued work until 1517
Dimensions & Format
77 cm x 53 cm (30 in x 21 in); Vertical Portrait format.
Subject Description
A half-length portrait of a seated woman, Lisa Gherardini, with an enigmatic smile and hands folded, set against a distant, misty mountainous landscape that employs aerial perspective.
Condition & Value Assessment
Condition Assessment
Good/Fair (stabilized). It suffers from extensive craquelure and the darkening/yellowing of old varnish over centuries.
Estimated Market Value
Indeterminate; widely considered the most valuable painting in the world, insured for $100 million in 1962 (approx. $900 million today).
Auction Estimate
N/A (Considered a national treasure and priceless; not legal to sell under French law).
Provenance History
Acquired by King Francis I of France; part of the French Royal Collection; currently held by the French Republic and permanently on display at the Musée du Louvre since 1797.
Art Historical Significance
The most famous painting in global history. It revolutionized portraiture through the use of sfumato and atmospheric perspective and remains the quintessential example of High Renaissance humanism and technical mastery.
Notable Features
Total absence of visible brushstrokes; subtle use of sfumato at the corners of the eyes and mouth to create an 'enigmatic' expression; the use of multiple thin glazes to create lifelike skin tones.
Condition Issues
Significant craquelure (fine cracking) across the surface; the wood panel has a vertical crack that has been stabilized. Significant yellowing of the protective varnish obscures the original cooler colors.
Conservation Recommendations
Maintained in a climate-controlled, bulletproof glass enclosure with filtered LED lighting and strictly monitored humidity to prevent further expansion of the wood panel.