The secret of the enigmatic smile of the model who posed for the painting "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci lies in her syphilis disease. This is the opinion of the British art critic Jonathan Jones. His research is published in The Guardian.
La Gioconda is considered to be a portrait of Lisa Gherardini, wife of the Florentine silk merchant Francesco del Giocondo. According to evidence preserved in the books of the Florentine monastery, the woman bought acqua di chiocciole, water from snails, which was then used to treat syphilis, at the local pharmacy.
Jones notes that in 1503, when Gherardini posed for da Vinci, syphilis was extremely common in Europe. It is believed that the infection was brought to the Old World by members of expeditions to America in 1492.
The art critic also adds that the landscape that served as the background for the painting hints at the origin of the Mona Lisa mystery. In his opinion, the model depicts the sea behind the model, from behind which the mountains can be seen - a symbol of the New World, that is, the source of syphilis brought by sailors.
In April 2016, the Italian scientist Silvano Vincheti suggested that on the canvas "La Gioconda" the painter depicted an androgyne - half-man, half-woman. In the portrait of Lisa Gherardini, he found features of the artist's alleged lover and his apprentice, Gian Giacomo Caprotti, better known as Salai (Devil).
The full name of "Mona Lisa", or "La Gioconda" - "Portrait of Mrs. Lisa Giocondo." The painting was painted by Leonardo da Vinci in 1503-1505.