BY Tara Welty | FOR ART MAGAZINE

Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is possibly the most famous painting in history. More than 500 years after it was first created, the subject’s mysterious expression and the fantastical setting continue to fascinate art lovers. Even during da Vinci’s lifetime, other artists copied the masterpiece, hoping to unlock the secrets of the artist’s technique.

Dozens of replicas of the Mona Lisa exist in museum collections around the world. Art conservators recently restored one such work, held by the Prado Museum in Madrid. As they removed layers of black overpaint, they uncovered something amazing. According to The Art Newspaper, they determined the copy was not created after da Vinci’s death as was previously thought. It was made at the same time—under the guidance of da Vinci himself!

One of da Vinci’s best students painted the copy. As the master changed and reworked his painting, so did the student. The result is a replica that once matched the original, down to the finest detail.

Over time, da Vinci’s work has darkened and the varnish covering it has cracked. The details in the image, especially in the subject’s clothing, are hard to see. It is considered too risky to clean and restore the original Mona Lisa because doing so could damage the work. But viewing the newly restored copy allows us to see Mona Lisa as it looked when the master first painted it.

In March, the Prado Museum will lend the copy to the Louvre, the museum in Paris that holds Mona Lisa. For the first time in more than 500 years, the paintings will once again hang side-by-side.