of France restored him to the office to
which Louis XII. had appointed him, and gave him an annual pension of
seven hundred gold crowns.

[Illustration: FIG. 37.--MONA LISA.--"LA BELLE JOCONDE."]

When Francis returned to France he desired to cut out the wall on which
the Last Supper was painted, and carry it to his own country: this proved
to be impossible, and it is much to be regretted, as it is probable that
if it could have been thus removed it would have been better preserved.
However, not being able to take the artist's great work, the king took
Leonardo himself, together with his favorite pupils and friends and his
devoted servant. In France, Leonardo was treated with consideration. He
resided near Amboise, where he could mingle with the court. It is said
that, old though he was, he was so much admired that the courtiers
imitated his dress and the cut of his beard and hair. He was given the
charge of all artistic matters in France, and doubtless Francis hoped that
he would found an Academy as he had done at Milan. But he seems to have
left all his energy, all desire for work, on the Italian side of the Alps.
He made a few plans; but he brought no great thing to pass, and soon his
health failed, and he fell into a decline. He gave great attention to
religious matters, received the sacrament, and then made his will, and put
his worldly affairs in order.

The king was accustomed to visit him frequently, and on the last day of
his life, when the sovereign entered the room, Leonardo desired to be
raised up as a matter of respect to the king: sitting, he conversed of his
sufferings, and lamented that he had done so little for God and man. Just
then he was seized with an attack of pain--the king rose to support him,
and thus, in the arms of Francis, the great master breathed his last. This
has sometimes been doubted; but the modern French critics agree with the
ancient writers who give this account of his end.

He was buried in the Church of St. Florentin at Amboise, and it is not
known that any monument was erected over him. In 1808 the church was
destroyed; in 1863 Arsine Houssaye, with others, made a search for the
grave of Leonardo, and it is believed that his remains were found. In
1873 a noble monument was erected in Milan to the memory of Da Vinci. It
is near the entrance to the Arcade of Victor Emmanuel: the statue of the
master stands on a high pedestal in a thoughtful attitude, the head bowed
down and the