Overview

• The Supreme Court overturned earlier trial and appellate decisions and ordered the return of two medieval statues to the Santiago City Council.
• The medieval sculptures, identified as the prophets Ezequiel and Jeremías from the Pórtico de la Gloria, were bought by the council in 1948 and sent to the Franco family’s Pazo de Meirás in 1954 after Carmen Polo expressed interest.
• Initial rulings in 2019 favored the Franco heirs over identification discrepancies, but the Supreme Court found fractures and archival records that conclusively matched the works to the council’s acquisition.
• Litigation began in 2017 under Mayor Martiño Noriega’s Compostela Aberta administration and spanned eight years before reaching the Supreme Court.
• Legal experts say the heirs are unlikely to seek further appeals, effectively concluding the dispute over the statues’ public patrimony.