A REAL-LIFE Da Vinci mystery has been solved - historians have discovered where Leonardo's Mona Lisa was buried. Art investigator Giuseppe Pallanti made the discovery after poring over hundreds of ancient manuscripts.

Da Vinci experts now hope to locate her coffin so that they can examine the DNA of her remains.

Mr Pallanti made his announcement at a packed press conference in the Renaissance city of Florence, visited by thousands of British holidaymakers every year.

He said that documents showed that Lisa Gherardini - or Mona Lisa - is buried in the rundown ruins of the former Convent of St Orsula in the heart of the city.

Mr Pallanti said: "Her tomb is in there. I've pored through thousands of archive pages and I'm convinced the remains of Leonardo's model Lisa Gherardini are buried there."

He added that his research had wiped away all doubt about the identity of La Gioconda, as the Italians call the Mona Lisa, because of the surname of her husband, Giocondo.

Mr Pallanti explained: "It was her, Lisa, the wife of the merchant Francesco Del Giocondo - and she lived right opposite Leonardo in Via Ghibellina.''

Historians are certain that Lisa Gherardini was the model and records show that she married Francesco Del Giocondo in 1495 when she was 16 and he was 35.

It has frequently been suggested that Del Giocondo commissioned Leonardo to paint his Mona Lisa - "mona" is the standard Italian contraction for "madonna", or "my lady", to mark his wife's pregnancy or the recent birth of their second child in December 1502.

Although pregnancy or childbirth have frequently been put forward as explanations for Mona Lisa's cryptic smile, countless other theories have circulated over the centuries.

Some have argued the painting is of the artist or one of his favourite male lovers in disguise. Supporters of this idea point to the fact that Da Vinci, whose sexuality is a matter of debate, kept it with him until his death in Amboise, France in 1519.

Medical experts came up with the theory that the Mona Lisa's mouth was clamped firmly shut because she was undergoing mercury treatment for syphilis which turned her teeth black. An American dentist has claimed that the tight-lipped expression was typical of people who have lost their front teeth.

A Danish doctor was convinced she suffered from congenital palsy which affected the left side of her face and this is why her hands are so large.

The world's greatest Da Vinci expert, Professor Carlo Pedretti, said: "Now that the final resting place of Mona Lisa Gherardini has been found, it would be very worthwhile to locate her remains and obtain her DNA.

"With the medical techniques available today, we could rebuild her physique and recreate the famous pose. The discovery of her burial place is very significant and I congratulate Pallanti."

According to Mr Pallanti, the faded yellow document he found had Lisa Gherardini's name, date of death (15 July, 1542), and place of burial written on it in ink.

Dilapidated and run down, the convent on Via Stufa in central Florence was later a warehouse, storerooms and tobacco factory before falling into ruin.

Documents show that, aged 60 and seriously ill, Lisa Gherardini entered the convent where her daughter Ludovica, who was a nun, looked after her.

When she died, three years later, the whole parish turned out for her funeral, showing she was still a famous figure.

The convent was just round the corner from her home on Via Stufa and Mr Pallanti is convinced the balustrade in the painting is the view from the nearby Santa Maria Novella church.

Not all art historians are convinced. Alessandro Vezzosi, director of the Da Vinci Museum, said: "I have always believed that the woman is the lover of Giuliano De Medici. The painting is not of Lisa Gherardini because she was not the lover of Giuliano De Medici."

FAMILY CONNECTIONS

LISA Gherardini became the prime candidate for the Mona Lisa when it was discovered that Leonardo da Vinci's father and her husband knew each other well before the picture was painted.

Piero da Vinci lived not far from Francesco del Giocondo and the two men socialised together.

Francesco's surname is close to the Italian name for the painting, La Gioconda, which means "the merry one", and he had a daughter called Lisa, who would have been about 24 when the painting is believed to have been started.

Other women suggested as candidates include Isabella d'Este, Isabella Gualanda and Cecilia Gallerani - all Italian society figures of their time - as well as various courtesans and prostitutes.

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