Which French president loaned the Mona Lisa to the USA in 1963?
Answer
Charles de Gaulle
Which French president loaned the Mona Lisa to the USA in 1963? Charles de Gaulle. The historic loan was made by the French government during de Gaulle’s presidency, with Culture Minister André Malraux accompanying the painting.
The Mona Lisa crossed the Atlantic at the end of 1962 and went on public display in January 1963. It first appeared at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., from January 9 to February 3, then travelled to New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art from February 7 to March 4. It returned to France aboard the SS United States on March 7.
The loan was both cultural diplomacy and a logistical feat. French conservators worried that transporting Leonardo’s fragile, centuries-old panel could cause damage. American officials arranged extraordinary security, and President John F. Kennedy attended the Washington opening with Jacqueline Kennedy.
A common mix-up is naming Malraux as the president: he was France’s minister of cultural affairs and a key organizer, not the head of state. De Gaulle was the French president whose government approved the loan.