WATCH: Climate protester smears cream over “Mona Lisa” artwork

Movers prepare to hang Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” painting ahead of its exhibition at The Arts House in Singapore. REUTERS/Edgar Su/Files

Movers prepare to hang Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” painting ahead of its exhibition at The Arts House in Singapore. REUTERS/Edgar Su/Files

Published May 31, 2022

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Cape Town - Videos immediately surfaced online of a 36-year-old man who has been arrested in Paris after he smeared the “Mona Lisa” with a cake, all part of a climate protest.

The Washington Post reported that the man entered the Louvre in a wheelchair on Sunday, wearing a wig and lipstick. He later stood up and took out the hidden dessert before smearing the priceless work of art.

Further videos of the incident showed a museum employee wiping the mess up and another showing the assailant being escorted away by security guards. He has since been referred to a police psychiatric unit.

During his guard escort, the man yelled in French: “Think of the Earth. There are people who are destroying the Earth … Think about it. That’s why I did this.”

— Yusra (@yusrali15) May 30, 2022

In a statement by the Paris prosecutor’s office on Monday, it said it was opening an investigation into damage of cultural artefacts after hospitalising the man.

The “Mona Lisa”, which is stored in one of the world’s most celebrated museums, has been previously targeted in 1911 and twice in 1956.

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