Da Vinci's Mona Lisa ID'd

It has been claimed that one of the most provocative and enduring identity verification cases has been solved.

The true identity of the woman in Leonardo da Vinci's most famous portrait "Mona Lisa" has been revealed, said German scientist Veit Probst.

Director of the Heidelberg University Library, Probst said the woman with a puzzling smile in Da Vinci's world-renowned portrait "Mona Lisa" is absolutely Lisa Gherardini, wife of a Florentine cloth merchant named Francesco del Giocondo.

The Mona Lisa was painted between the years 1503 and 1506 and is one of the most precious works of art on display in Paris's Louvre Museum. The portrait used to be called La Gioconda.

The identity of Mona Lisa was revealed thanks to a handwritten footnote on a document that belonged to the former owner of the famous painting, Probst said.

Notably, it has historically been thought that Lisa, wife of del Giocondo, was, in fact, the subject of Leonardo's painting, however, documented evidence was lacking. Apparently Probst's contribution to the case is the discovery of a handwritten piece of evidence. A scientific article will be published soon, Probst promised.