The Mona Lisa was painted by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is considered a masterpiece of the Italian Renaissance and is believed to depict Lisa del Giocondo, an Italian noblewoman. Leonardo began painting it around 1503 and may have continued working on it intermittently until about 1517. After Leonardo's death, the painting was acquired by King Francis I of France and is now displayed at the Louvre Museum in Paris.