Archaeologists on a dig in Italy claim to have discovered the skull of the woman who posed for Leonardo's da Vinci's masterpiece.

The secret behind the famously enigmatic smile of the Mona Lisa, the world's most famous painting, could soon be solved.
The excavation team revealed over the weekend that it had found a crypt after a two-week search at an abandonedconvent in Florence.
But the grave beneath St. Ursula convent, believed to be the final resting place of Lisa Gherardini Del Giocondo, has now yielded a female-sized skull.
The merchant's wife is widely believed to have been the life model for da Vinci's best-known work.
Now scientists will compare the DNA in the bones with the remains of the model's two children who were buried nearby.
If scientists can confirm the skull belongs to the model, forensic artists will then attempt to reconstruct her face to see - and perhaps solve the riddle of the Mona Lisa's enigma



考古学家在意大利挖掘时声称发现了达•芬奇名作《蒙娜丽莎的微笑》模特的头骨。

举世闻名的《蒙娜丽莎的微笑》名画背后主人公的秘密将被揭晓。

挖掘队伍上周末公布，经过近半月的搜寻，他们发现了葬在废弃的佛罗伦萨修道院内这具骸骨。

位于圣厄休拉修道院下面的坟墓被认为是丽莎最后的栖息之所，现在就在这里发现了一具女性骸骨。
丽萨是一名丝绸富商的妻子，被公认为达•芬奇名作主人公的现实原型。

现在科学家将把遗骨的DNA与埋在附近的丽莎的两位后裔对比。
如果科学家能肯定头骨即为模特原型，法医艺术家将尝试对其面部进行复原，这或许能解开蒙娜丽莎微笑之谜。

• painting [´peintiŋ] n.绘画；(油)画；着色 (初中英语单词)
• confirm [kən´fə:m] vt.证实；认可；加强 (初中英语单词)
• convent [´kɔnvənt] n.女修道院；女修道会 (高中英语单词)
• riddle [´ridl] n.谜(语) v.解(谜等) (高中英语单词)
• weekend [´wi:kend, ,wi:k´end] n.周末休假 (英语四级单词)
• excavation [,ekskə´veiʃən] n.挖掘，洞，穴 (英语六级单词)
• abandoned [ə´bændənd] a.被抛弃的；无约束的 (英语六级单词)
• reconstruct [,ri:kən´strʌkt] vt.修复；使再现 (英语六级单词)