Spanish police have recovered two 17th-century paintings by Sevillian artist Lucas Valdés that went missing nearly a century ago after being loaned to the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Seville. The oval oil-on-pine-panel works, originally part of the main altarpiece at the Hospital of the Venerable Priests, resurfaced when consigned for auction in September 2025. Alerted by the Archdiocese of Seville, Spain's Culture Ministry and National Police intervened before the sale, confirmed the works' identity, and negotiated their return to the hospital last week.
The recovery comes amid a wave of highly politicized restitution battles in Spain, where disputes over ownership, missing inventory, and Civil War-era displacements have embroiled major institutions. Recent cases include a Supreme Court order for Barcelona's MNAC to return medieval murals to Sijena Monastery, a financial standoff between Catalonia and Aragón over 56 artworks, and mounting pressure on Madrid's Reina Sofía museum to audit its holdings. These conflicts reveal how art ownership in Spain remains deeply entangled with regional politics, Civil War history, and competing visions of cultural heritage.