An Italian art researcher says that the Mona Lisa, Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting, contains hidden letters in the eyes that may be a clue to her identity.
Silvano Vinceti, the chairman of the Italian national committee for cultural heritage, found the letters through high-resolution imagery. The letters were created in black with a very fine brush, and were invisible to the naked eye.
The letters L,V are behind the right pupil of the woman, and are da Vinci’s intials. Behind the left pupil are either B, S, or C, E, which Vinceti believes are the initials of the model.
“Leonardo was keen on symbols and codes to get messages across, and he wanted us to know the identity of the model using the eyes, which he believed were the door to the soul and a means for communication,” Vinceti told the Guardian newspaper.
He also said he uncovered the number 72, or L2, under the bridge that is behind her.
Many believe that Lisa Gherardini is the model for the famous painting. Vincenti thinks that the painting was created in Milan and the woman is from the court of Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan.
