June 8, 2022

Image by KLEVISL007 VIA AP 

The Mona Lisa was smeared with cake at the Louvre on Sunday in a stunt that went viral on social media on Sunday. However, because the famed Leonardo da Vinci painting is encased in bullet-proof glass, it emerged from the attempted vandalism unscathed.

In what appeared to be video shot immediately following the incident, a person dressed as a woman who was seated in a wheelchair is escorted out of the museum by security guards. The suspect, who has since been identified as a 36-year-old man, was reportedly arrested and placed under psychiatric care.

Image by social media

Bystanders said a "man dressed as an old lady" jumped out of a wheelchair at the Louvre in Paris before attempting to smash the protective glass in front of the Leonardo da Vinci painting. And He said “There are people who are destroying the Earth,” the man says in the video, speaking in French. “All artists, think about the Earth. That’s why I did this. Think of the planet.”

The gallery explained the culprit had managed to get close to the portrait by "simulating a disability", allowing them to take advantage of a policy designed to help people with mobility problems see the major works in its collection clearly.