Maine's own Mona Lisa mystery

Although the buzz over "The Da Vinci Code" movie has waned, nothing perks up interest in the great Leonardo like one of his original works, and Maine's Portland Museum of Art has one--or does it?

All summer long, the museum will display its rarely seen "Mona Lisa" painting, attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. This enigmatic "La Gioconda" is thought to be either a preparatory study for the "Mona Lisa" by da Vinci himself or a copy painted by one of his followers shortly after the creation of the original, which now resides in the Louvre museum in Paris.

The painting was given to the Portland Museum of Art in 1983 by Henry H. Reichhold. a summer resident of Prouts Neck, Maine, who purchased the work in the 1960s after the death of its European owner. Subsequently, "La Gioconda" was analyzed at the Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies at Harvard University. Conservators determined that the painting was executed before 1510--the original "Mona Lisa" was created between 1503-07 but they were unable to confirm or refute da Vinci's hand in its creation. However, similarities are remarkable, as it contains the characteristics of a lefthanded brushstroke, consistent with ea Vinci's sty e as a southpaw artist.

Unlike a forgery or counterfeit. Portland's "Mona Lisa." on the basis of technical analyses. differs from the original in size. composition of background landscape and, most notably, the absence of the enigmatic smile--details which suggest an early study rather than a simple reproduction. Moreover. the Portland piece is unfinished. The colors are less bright; the position of the figure is slightly off; and the landscape in the background has less detail.

Numerous copies of the "Mona Lisa" exist. From the 16th through 19th centuries, artists traditionally copied acknowledged masterpieces in order to learn more about the stylistic and compositional techniques of the great masters.

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