Is that a Da Vinci in your bathroom?


Imagine discovering that the painting you bought for a mere $19,000 just might be worth a cool $150 million -- all because a fingerprint was found in the paint. That's what may have happened to the owners of "Profile of the Bella Principessa." For years the painting has been in private collections. It was purchased at auction in 2007 for $19,000 by a Swiss art collector. But then things got very interesting...

Leonardo da Vinci not only used brushes when he painted, but he also utilized his fingers and hands, often leaving behind fingerprints in the process. When examining "Profile of the Bella Principessa," art experts found a fingerprint which, upon closer examination, matches fingerprints found in another da Vinci painting.

Fascinating! Later this month I'm interviewing Dr. William Wallace, one of the art world's foremost experts on Michelangelo and author of a new biography. You can bet I'll be asking him about the intersection between art and technology in our ever-changing world.

Read more and watch a video about da Vinci:
Possible New Da Vinci Painting Found : Discovery News (view on Google Sidewiki)

Contests and Winners

Happy New Year!  I hope your year has started off well. I know that’s true for several readers of The Gypsy’s Guide.   They’ve started off by winning! And if you didn't win, there's another chance for you! Read on...


Congratulations to Elizabeth! She is the winner in the Happy New Year’s Giveaway and will be receiving a gorgeous, leather-bound journal from Venice in her mailbox very soon. Elizabeth blogs at A Nut in a Nutshell, and you can follow her on Twitter: @blueviolet.

Elizabeth, I hope your 2010 book is filled with exciting tales!


The PwP prize winners have all been chosen and notified.  Many thanks to all of you who contributed so generously!  And congratulations go out to Lora!  She won my prize -- a two night stay at the luxurious Shangri-La Hotel in Vancouver, B.C. courtesy of KiwiCollection.com.  Lora, I hope you have a fabulous time, and please let us know what you think of the hotel. 

I’ve also heard that several Gypsy’s Guide readers are winners in other drawings.  Congratulations to you all! 

In case you haven’t heard, Passports with Purpose raised more than $26,000 -- twice our original goal.  Not only will we be building a school in Cambodia, but it will also be staffed with a nurse, a cook, a gardener, and an entire garden of produce will be planted so that the children at the school can have a nutritious meal each day.  That’s all thanks to you! 

I’ll be participating in Passports with Purpose again next year, and if you would like to be a sponsor, donate a prize, or be a blogging partner, contact me. 


Later this month author Robin Maxwell will be stopping by to talk about her book O, Juliet, to be published just in time for Valentine’s Day.  Robin writes popular historical fiction including The Queen’s Bastard, Mademoiselle Boleyn, and Signora da Vinci.  Her latest, O, Juliet, is a retelling of the Romeo and Juliet story set in Renaissance Italy.  I’m reading it right now and will be reviewing it later this month.

This week Robin is hosting a giveaway on her blog.  The winner will get a signed copy of O, Juliet as well as a gorgeous heart necklace.  Stop by her blog, leave a comment, and I hope you win! 

Thanks to you 2009 was a great year at The Gypsy’s Guide, and I’m looking forward to all that 2010 has in store.  Ciao!

Rome: How to Ring in the New Year Properly


Happy New Year! As I wrote last year, each year a group of our friends gather to celebrate the New Year. We all live in different states, so we rotate hosting duties. This year everyone is cozied up in our house. Last night we celebrated the end of 2009 with Prosecco and lasagne. Today we are watching HBO's "Rome" -- a fabulous TV drama about the days of Julius Caesar in Rome. "Rome" is fabulous TV!



The cast is incredible -- filled with BBC all-stars including Polly Walker as Atia, Kevin McKidd as Lucius, and Ciaran Hinds as Caesar. And the costumes and sets bring ancient Rome alive in all its golden glory.


So, we are cozied up in our jammies, with a pot of coffee on, and we're starting the year off right -- in "Rome!"

Happy New Year to you all!

Links: HBO: Rome (view on Google Sidewiki)