Protesters throw soup all over Mona Lisa painting in Paris
Protestors have thrown soup all over the Mona Lisa painting at the Louvre museum in Paris.
Two eco activists threw cans of what appears to be tomato soup across the painting, which is over 500 years old.
After throwing the tins of soup, the pair climbed under the barrier surrounding the painting.
You can watch the shocking footage below:
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Luckily, the Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece is protected by bulletproof glass and so there was no damage made.
Following the incident, one of the protestors took off her jacket to reveal a T-shirt reading 'Riposte Alimentaire', which translates as 'Food Response' in English.
According to reports, the protestors were demanding the right to 'healthy and sustainable food', explaining: "Our agricultural system is sick."
The Mona Lisa is one of the most valuable paintings in the world. In 1962, it had an insurance valuation of $100 million, which equates to around $1 billion today.
It's not the first time the painting has come under attack.
In May 2022, protestors threw a custard pie at the Mona Lisa.
The perpetrator was a man wearing a wig, who was moving past the painting in a wheelchair before he suddenly stood and launched the dessert at the masterpiece.
He then threw a bouquet of roses into the air before being tackled by security guards.
While the man tried to smash the protective glass, he was thankfully unsuccessful.
"Think of the planet… there are people who are destroying the planet, think about that … That's why I did it," he could be heard shouting.
At the time, the Louvre said: "The individual was immediately seized and evacuated by the reception and surveillance agents and then handed over to the police, who came to the scene."
The painting, created between 1503 and 1519 by da Vinci, is displayed in the busiest room at the Louvre, with mobs of tourists trying to catch their own glimpse of the iconic artwork themselves every day.
In 1956, the lower part of the masterpiece was severely damaged when a vandal doused the painting with acid, according to Daily Art.
It was also stolen over a century ago in 1911. It took Louvre staff more than 24 hours to notice the painting was gone after it was taken by Italian handyman Vincenzo Peruggia, CNN reports.
The iconic artwork was missing for two years with police reaching a dead-end in their investigation.
The painting was recovered when Peruggia turned up at the Louvre with the Mona Lisa in the boot of his car, returning it because he felt guilty.
Topics: World News, Art, Crime
Lucy Devine