Digital Enhancement Shows Mona Lisa To Be a Beautiful Woman

I saw the Mona Lisa at the Louvre in 2007.  I had always thought that the painting was of an older woman, a bit on the dowdy side.  Yeah, I have often heard people say that the Mona Lisa (whoever she was) was a beautiful woman.  I just thought that they had a different idea about beauty five hundred years ago.

Just relaxing on a Saturday afternoon, I decided to do a quick digital enhancement of the Mona Lisa. Since the picture was painted in 1506, it has darkened and dulled and cracked over time. I removed the cracks in the paint, lightened it, enhanced the colors and added some eyebrows (experts say she had them but they have all but faded away).

The result is a rather stunning revelation, i.e., that Mona Lisa really was a beautiful young woman. This young lady wouldn't want for dates even in 2012; her beauty seems timeless.

She appears a bit shy but coquettish with her shy smile.  I'll bet she knew how to work those eyes to make men do what she wanted.

 Original is on the right for comparison.