Lisa Gherardini

Hello! My name is Lisa Gherardini, and I want to tell you my story. I was born in a beautiful city in Italy called Florence on June 15th, 1479. It was a very special time to be alive, a period people now call the Renaissance. The word 'Renaissance' means 'rebirth,' and it felt like my whole city was being reborn with new ideas, amazing art, and grand buildings everywhere you looked. My family had lived in Florence for a very long time. I grew up surrounded by the lively sounds and colorful sights of this creative and bustling city.

When I turned fifteen years old, my life changed in a wonderful way. On March 5th, 1495, I married a kind and successful merchant named Francesco del Giocondo. We built a happy life together and had five children, which filled our home with so much love and laughter. The year 1503 was particularly special for our family. Not only did we move into a brand new home, but we also welcomed our new son, Andrea. My husband, Francesco, was so happy that he wanted to find a special way to capture this joyful time in our lives forever.

To celebrate our new home and son, Francesco decided to hire the most famous artist in all of Italy, perhaps even the world, to paint a picture of me. This artist's name was Leonardo da Vinci. Sitting for a portrait is not as easy as it sounds. I had to stay very still for hours at a time, day after day. Leonardo was a very thoughtful man. He understood that it was difficult to hold a smile for so long, so he hired musicians to play lovely music and storytellers to tell entertaining tales while he worked. This helped me keep a pleasant expression. He spent years working on my portrait, carefully adding tiny brushstrokes and details. He grew so fond of the painting that he never gave it to my husband and me. When he later moved to France, he took my portrait with him.

I lived a full and happy life in Florence. After my dear husband Francesco passed away in 1538, I moved into a convent where one of my daughters was a nun. I lived to be 63 years old and passed away on July 15th, 1542. I never imagined that the portrait Leonardo painted would one day become the most famous painting in the world. Today, millions of people travel from all over to visit the Louvre Museum in Paris just to see it. They call it the 'Mona Lisa,' and many people talk about my mysterious smile. I was simply a woman from Florence, but my portrait has continued to tell a story for more than 500 years.