i'm talking about the mona lisa, painted by leonardo davinci. first of all, no one is exactly sure when davinci created his masterpiece. most agree that it was sometime between 1502 and 1506. and just who is the lady in the picture? it's generally believed that she was the wife of a wealthy silk merchant. another mystery is why mona lisa doesn't have eyebrows. actually, she does, or once did. digital scanning uncovered traces of the missing brows. apparently, they faded with time. if imitation is the highest form of flattery, davinci has a lot to be proud of. another giant of renaissance art, rafael, was so taken with mona lisa's unusual pose that he copied it in his painting young woman with a unicorn. notice how similar the body positions are. in fact, rafael copied the pose yet again. as i said, imitation is a form of flattery. mona lisa is said to be invaluable. what makes it so special? critics usually cite two main reason. both have to do with her smile. it's been called enigmatic, which is another way of saying mysterious. she seems to be