One of the most well-known works of art in all of the world, the Mona Lisa was composed by the great Leonardo da Vinci in the early 16th century. The painting is cherished for a number of reasons, from da Vinci’s docile brushstrokes and masterful perspective to the ambiguity of the subject’s expression. First acquired by King Francis I of France, it was later moved to The Louvre in Paris in 1797 and the famous museum became its longtime home.

On this day, January 8, 1963, Leona da Vinci’s Mona Lisa makes it’s first appearance in the United States, displayed at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C.

The National Gallery is one of the most celebrated collections of art across the entire United States, with famous paintings from a number of periods, including works by Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cezanne, Raphael, and Rembrandt. Another one of the standout displays at the museum is The Voyage of Life by American painter Thomas Cole, which displays four canvases of a man’s passage through life from childhood to youth to manhood to old age. However, the temporary exhibition of the Mona Lisa remains no doubt one of the more meaningful periods in the museum’s history.