Is it blasphemous to say the Mona Lisa is an ugly painting?

Blasphemy, of course, is a matter for whoever controls your belief system (Church of Rome or whoever), but one must remember that a) a beautiful painting does not have to be of a beautiful subject, and b) beauty is not the sole measure of value in a work of art. read more

The original sitter was Mona Lisa del Giocondo, who, at the time, was mourning the death of her baby daughter and wore a transparent veil during the sittings. Da Vinci spent fours years on the painting and he eventually left it with the Giocondos. read more

1804, Mona Lisa is hung in the Louvre - and others can now glimpse at the painting that Napoleon slept with. But the real tipping point for the paintings popularity only hit in August of 1911 - when Mona Lisa is stolen. Stolen from heavily secured Louvre which experts said was impossible. No one knows who stole it or how. Conspiracy theories abound. read more