New Mona Lisa to be revealed

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Isleworth Mona Lisa was created on canvas and bought by art critic Blaker.

The Isleworth Mona Lisa, a slightly larger version of the Louvre’s original, is due to be unveiled in Geneva today.

A Swiss-based consortium, which owns the picture, has claimed that it is the first version of Leonardo’s portrait, according to the British-based Art Newspaper.

Details will be provided by Alessandro Vezzosi, the director of the Museo Ideale Leonardo da Vinci in the artist’s birthplace of Vinci.

According to the Art Newspaper, this version of the famous painting was bought in 1914 by artist and critic Hugh Blaker, who lived in Isleworth, west London.

Not like the Louvre’s Mona Lisa

Unlike the Louvre’s “Mona Lisa,” which was created on panel between 1503 and 1519, the painting in question was completed on canvas, has columns along the sides and features a very simple landscape.
The puzzle now facing Leonardo specialists is whether the Isleworth version is indeed from the master’s studio or is a subsequent copy, possibly from the late 16th century. Although the Prado’s copy of the “Mona Lisa” was accepted earlier this year as being from Leonardo’s studio, the latest announcement is likely to be greeted with initial skepticism. The painting is to be unveiled by Anatoly Karpov, the chess grandmaster and a member of the Zurich-based Mona Lisa Foundation.