TIL a copy of the Mona Lisa painted by one of Da Vinci’s apprentices is in the Prado Museum in Spain. The identity of which apprentice painted it is debated.

2 Comments

1. [I put them next to each other, so it’s easier to compare the two.](https://i.imgur.com/wmvFQKg.jpeg)

   (I cut off a bit of the sky in the original, so the subject would match in size.)

   Edit. I have to say that the background is quite interesting to compare.

   First, in the anonymous Prado version, the background looks much more even and realistic if you compare the mountains left and right of Mona Lisa’s head. This has always bugged me in Leonardo’s version.

   Second, the background is overall lacking in detail (compared to the subject) but some details are quite pronounced. The parts which are detailed and the ones which aren’t are the exact same in both versions, which makes me believe that it was a pre-painted backdrop. That would also explain the awkward perspective of the columns.

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2. 🤔

   My first impression when I saw that copy was that I liked it better than the original because the colors seem more vivid…

   🤷‍♂️

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