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Chapter 13
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CHAPTER EIGHT: The Unusual Suspects
If it’s not Lisa G then who else could it be?
Another thing you might notice about the girl in the painting is her realism. She doesn’t seem to be an ideal vision of beauty or especially different looking. This would lead me to believe its very representative of someone or something specific –a portrait. If he wanted to paint an imaginary woman, I think he would make her amazingly beautiful. I assume that some might think she’s very pretty but when you consider his face matches up so well, it makes it more likely it’s more than just a random girl. She’s gotta be a relative, a hypothetical identical twin sister or some thing special to him. Right?
If it were of a real daughter the time line could match up. Id say Mona Lisa looks about in her 20’s and its possible Da Vinci had a child at some point. If not - it’s interesting he decided to paint her at this age.
Here are the different possibilities you might consider the girl in the painting really being;
1. She’s Lisa Giocondo. For obvious reasons, this isn’t very likely. I think she was used for her name - not her face. Her last name for a clue, and her first for the painting. Like I said, there could be a valid Da Vinci painted portrait of Lisa G, but the one in question is not her.
2. She’s a complete fabrication. All paintings are in some way a fabrication. They are oils and colors mixed together to create a form that imitates some thing. In this case it’s more of an idea than a total fabrication A What if, or a metaphor for something else. Definitely not just something imaginary like a mermaid but a very well thought out representation of someone specific.
3. She’s a He. In a very simple way yes, but in a complicated way - no. I don’t see “Mona Lisa” as being a man. Androgynous slightly, but not a man. Some assume its Da Vinci in “drag” but that would be an easy assumption based only on his eyes and basic facial structure matching up. You’ll notice the nose doesn’t have the same profile. Granted noses keep growing it’s unlikely it would grow from a sloped nose to a “roman nose” Da Vinci was very detail oriented. (He even listed each type of nose there is.)
4. She’s Mary Magdalene or Madonna. That would be interesting, Madonna Lisa, Other than Monna meaning Madonna and knowing Da Vinci painted religious figures before, it’s not likely his face would match up.
5. She’s Da Vinci’s Mother. Mother guru Freud himself said that Da Vinci had mommy issues. Da Vinci’s mother Catrina was a peasant girl and wasn’t married to his father. Although I’m sure he could remember his mother. The girl in the painting is young and it would be interesting to know if Da Vinci could remember what his mother looked like at that age. It would make sense that he would paint his mother and also explain the facial similarities between him and her.
6. She’s Da Vinci’s real life unknown daughter. Even though Leonardo was with Salai until his death, it’s very possible for anyone to have a child. There’s an innate and natural urge for everyone to have children regardless if they happen to love the same sex or not. Having and raising children doesn’t have anything to do with sexuality after the conception. I could definitely see Da Vinci wanting to have a child and doing it. Why he would keep her a secret, I don’t know. Would he paint her? - of course!
6.5: She’s Da Vinci’s “potential” Daughter If he never had a daughter, this could very likely be what he imagined her to look like. It would explain why his facial structure would match up and his love of the painting and also why he would put so much time and effort into making it so enchanting. Everyone loves to brag about their children! If this is just a representation of what his daughter might look like, it also makes you wonder who he would want the other parent to be... Hmm A mother? Probably not. If this is a hypothetical daughter he could also give it a hypothetical parent. It makes sense. Da Vinci knew anatomy enough to make it work and had the painting skills to execute it (obviously) He had motive and all the means - Mona Lisa Da Vinci could be our suspect!
7.. She’s a Female version of Da Vinci himself. This is one of the more popular theories and with good reason. The facial features match up - the names allude to it being someone covered up in a veil. If his face matches up the way it does, people back in his day could most likely see a resemblance especially those who had seen him in his younger years. He was old when he finished the Mona Lisa and it makes sense that he might be curious what he would look like as a woman. Not dressed as one, but being born as one. He could definitely pull it off and I’m sure he knew how. Why? Why not? It’s could be just a simple curiosity or it could be a social statement about how similar the different sexes truly are. There are those who can literally become indistinguishable as the opposite sex and there are even some born as both sexes. It’s a fact of life many people would rather dismiss but it’s only a difference that matters if you choose it to. Women worked hard for their equality and this could very well be a statement towards the equality of women by emphasizing the similarities - not the differences. I’ve also read from Plato that there used to be three sexes. Maybe this is a tribute to that?
So who is she really? Real, imagined, daughter? Father? Man / Woman? Stay tuned fellow readers…
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