Spanish police cordon off Catalan museum after religious artefacts seized

THE ART NEWSPAPER
By Gareth Harris
The disputed tombs Xavier Zapater Lleida Museum
Unrest has broken out at the Lleida Museum in western Catalonia after Spanish law enforcement officers entered the institution [yesterday] morning. The move is the latest development in a long-running restitution saga centered on 44 religious artifacts housed at the museum, which have become a symbol of Catalonia’s bid for independence. The disputed pieces were removed from the Monasterio de Santa Maria de Sijena in neighboring Aragon under the post-war dictatorship of General Franco, and deposited in Catalonian institutions. Some objects have been returned but religious items, including medieval sarcophagi, remained at Lleida Museum. A spokeswoman for the museum tells us that “the objects are packed and will leave the museum today”. The Spanish ministry of culture declined to comment. [More]
Catalan parties say Sixena works of art removal is a “humiliation”. CREDIT: Catalan News
Disputed Medieval treasures of Spain’s Sijena convent. The Telegraph
44 artifacts kept in Catalonia’s Museum of Lleida have become a flashpoint CREDIT: The Telegraph