Catalonia Sues Aragón for €791,000 for Repayment Over Restitution of 56 Artworks

The Catalan government in Spain sent a formal demand to the Aragonese government asking for €791,000 (around $920,000) to recoup costs related to the value and upkeep of artworks from the Royal Monastery of Santa María de Sigena it was ordered to return in 2017, according to a report in El País.

Of the 56 works, 12 had been kept at the National Art Museum of Catalonia and 44 at the Diocesan Museum of Lleida. The works were removed from the monastery in 1936 to protect them from ruin during the Spanish Civil War.

In a ruling in 2021, the Supreme Court in Spain stated that “the items formed part of the artistic treasure of the Monastery of Sijena at the time it was declared a National Monument [in 1923], and therefore the protection afforded by that declaration must also extend to that artistic treasure.” 

As noted by El País, the Catalan government stated in the document sent to the Aragonese government that “the consequence of declaring the purchase agreements null and void is the reciprocal restitution of the payments made and the settlement of the possessory status.”

The document also notes that the Catalan government’s intention is to negotiate a solution to the conflict within 30 days. If negotiations do not lead to a resolution, the government will return to the courts.