Russian attacks Mona Lisa painting in Paris

Paris, Aug 11 (ANI): A Russian tourist sparked off a security alert at the Louvre Museum here, when she threw a mug at Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, the world's best-known painting.

According to reports, an empty terracotta mug bought from the museum gift shopwas thrown at the painting.

The mug, however, bounced harmlessly off the bullet-proof glass shielding the painting and cracked after it landed on the floor

"The Mona Lisa is a carefully watched and protected painting. It is kept in a special sealed box to protect it from vibrations, heat and humidity. It is protected by thick glass resistant to bullets and any other object hurled at it," a museum official was quoted as saying.

Museum security guards have handed over the woman to central Paris police, where she underwent a psychological examination, The Telegraph reports. (ANI)