The National Art Museum of Catalonia (MNAC) in Barcelona has failed to comply with a May 2025 Spanish Supreme Court ruling ordering the return of 13th-century Romanesque murals to the Sijena Monastery in Aragon. Despite the legal mandate ending a decade-long dispute, the museum continues to house the works, citing significant technical and conservation risks associated with transporting the delicate canvases.
This standoff highlights the complex tension between legal ownership and the physical preservation of cultural heritage. While the Aragonese government seeks the restoration of its historical legacy, MNAC argues that moving the murals from their climate-controlled environment to the monastery could cause irreversible damage, raising critical questions about whether judicial rulings should override professional conservation concerns.