She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last forever. But, at nearly 500

She is widely seen as proof that good lookscan last forever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up withthe Mona Lisa.

The health of the famous picture, paintedby Leonardo da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to theLouvre museum(卢浮宫博物馆)where it is housed.

“The thin, wooden panel on which the MonaLisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,”the museum said. Visitors have noticed the changes but repairing the world’smost famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials theItalian artist used and their current chemical state.

Nearly 6 million people go to see the MonaLisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is veryinteresting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, andthen you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone ofHarvard University. “It’s because direct vision(视觉)is excellent at picking up detail, but lesssuited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”

However, the actual history of the MonaLisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much thathe always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s KingFrancis I in 1519.

In 1911, the painting was stolen from theLouvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under hiscoat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back toFrance two years later.

During World War II, French hid thepainting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.

Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa hassome interesting stories to tell.

1. The underlined sentence in the firstparagraph means the Mona Lisa ________.

2. Experts haven’t any repairs on the MonaLisa because______.

1.      

3.The smile of the Mona Lisa can only beseen_______.

4. From the last paragraph, we can inferthat______.

试题答案

【答案】

1.B

2.D

3.A

4.C

【解析】 略