The exhumation of the body of Salvador Dali showed that the famous mustache has retained its shape. Salvador Dali's remains exhumed in Spain

The remains of Salvador Dali were exhumed in July this year, as the Spanish authorities tried to find out if he had great artist a child who was born as a result of an affair. In a closed procedure, samples of hair, nails, teeth and several bones were obtained from the artist's embalmed body, and the DNA obtained from these samples may offer a definitive answer that will help resolve the protracted high-profile paternity lawsuit.

Dali's mustache has retained its shape!

On this moment answer to main question is inaccurate, but forensic scientists were able to uncover one very interesting detail when they briefly removed Dali's body from his tomb, located in the Dali Theater Museum in Figueres: his legendary mustache remained in perfect shape. “His mustache kept that classic 10:10 stance,” said Lewis Peñulas, general secretary Dali Foundation. “Finding this was a very exciting moment.” The forensic doctor who embalmed the great artist's body in 1989 was also present during the procedure, which took place in July 2017 and took only a few hours. “It was a real miracle! said Narcis Bardalet. "Salvador Dali is eternal."

Paternity DNA test

And it may also turn out that he is the father. At least that's what 61-year-old Pilar Abel, who specializes in reading tarot cards, says. She states that the great artist had an affair with her mother in 1955, that is, one year before her birth. “The first time I saw him, I was a little girl,” she told reporters three years ago when she filed a lawsuit in accordance with which she wants to claim part of the property left after the artist. “I was walking with my great-grandmother and she showed it to me.” At this time, Dali was married, although, as is typical for a man like him, this marriage was far from the most common. “At the time, he was married to his muse Gala, who lived in a castle that he could visit only with written permission,” explained journalist Lauren Fryer. - They didn't have children. Since Dali did not have an heir, his entire fortune, numbering hundreds of millions, was left to the Spanish state in 1989, when he died.

Did Dali have a child?

In 2007, Abel announced her demand publicly and has since been looking for evidence, stating that she wants to honor the memory of her mother in this way. Enrique Blances, Abel's lawyer, also says that if such evidence is found, then Abel will be able to claim a quarter of Dali's property, which he left after his death. Peñulas and the Dali Foundation, which manages the artist's estate, did not want the exhumation to take place, so attempts were made to fight the exhumation order issued by a Madrid judge in June 2017. Also, representatives of the Fund promised that they would continue to defend their position in court. “The Foundation believes that the exhumation of the body of Salvador Dali was completely inappropriate,” the Foundation said in a statement after the exhumation was completed and Dalí’s body was returned to its place.

The position of representatives of the Dalí Foundation

“Before agreeing to such an invasive act as the exhumation of the body of Salvador Dali, the applicant Pilar Abel Martinez had to take a DNA test herself to compare her DNA with that of her legal father (deceased) or her brother in order to obtain all the necessary evidence that she is not their daughter or sister, respectively,” the representatives of the foundation believe. However, Abel herself is now confident that the forensic experts currently working on this case will prove her right. After all, she believes that she looks exactly like Salvador Dali. “The only thing I don’t have is a mustache,” she said. It remains to wait quite a bit, and the world will know if Dali had children.

Image copyright AFP/EPA Image caption Ms. Martinez was born in 1956 and claims that Salvador Dali is her father.

On Friday night, the body of the artist Salvador Dali was exhumed in order to establish paternity, which is claimed by a woman who calls herself his daughter.

The operation, during which samples of the artist's teeth, bones and nails were taken, lasted four hours. Experts will now match Dali's DNA samples with those of his self-proclaimed daughter.

To get to the body of the artist, it was necessary to lift a one and a half ton slab that covers his grave.

The grave of the surrealist artist, who died in 1989 at the age of 85, is located in the museum dedicated to his life and work in Figueres in Catalonia.

The process is proceeding on its own, despite the objections of local authorities and the Salvador Dalí Foundation, which consider the grounds for the exhumation to be insufficient.

Maria Pilar Abel Martinez, a tarot card reader, was born in 1956. She claims that her mother Antonia had an affair with Dali a year before she was born. Antonia worked for a family that then spent time in Cadaqués, not far from the artist's home.

Last month, a Madrid judge ordered an exhumation to resolve the issue. The exhumation was opposed by the Salvador Dali Foundation, which manages the legacy of the artist, who is believed to have had no children.

Ms Martinez claims that her mother and paternal grandmother told her that Dali was her father. She quoted her grandmother's words in an interview with journalists from the El Mundo newspaper: "I love you very much, but I know that you are not my son's daughter. Moreover, I know who your father is Salvador Dali."

Once, according to Mrs. Martinez, she asked her mother: "Am I really the daughter of Salvador Dali? Look how ugly he was." Her mother then replied: "Yes, but he had his own charm. And yes, he is your father."

The actions of Mrs. Martinez run counter to the interests of the state, to which Dali bequeathed his property. If paternity is confirmed, she will be able to claim his last name and part of the inheritance.

The very same story about Dali's novel surprised many, not so much because Dali got married in 1955, but because of his difficult sexual preferences. For many, this explains the impossibility of the idea that a woman could become pregnant from him.

According to Dali's biographer Ian Gibson, the very idea that the artist ever had physical intimacy with a woman is "absolutely impossible" despite 50 years of married life with Elena Ivanovna Dyakonova, his Russian wife, better known as Gala.

"Dali always boasted that he was impotent and that it was necessary to be impotent to become a great artist," says the biographer.

Salvador Dali: the life of a surrealist

• Born May 11, 1904 in Figueres, Catalonia
• During his life he painted over 1500 paintings.
• Married Elena Ivanovna Dyakonova (Gala) in 1934; the couple had no children
• The couple was in an open relationship and often had orgies in their home. Dali, however, preferred observation to participation.
• Died January 23, 1989 in Figueres

Dalí's close friendship with homosexual poet Federico García Lorca stoked rumors that Dalí was homosexual, but Ian Gibson is certain they never crossed the friendly line.

Carlos Lozano, who was in the circle of Dali's close people for some time, told the biographer that "Dali, in principle, could not have sexual relations, even with Gala ... He could not stand the touch, and when he touched someone, it seemed as if the eagle was grabbing you with its claws.

"Great Voyeur"

Dali's strange sexual tendencies seem to have been woven into his work, and in 1956 - the year Mrs. Martinez was born - he wrote in his diary: "I feel a state of constant intellectual excitement."

There are a number of paintings that have contributed to Dali's particular reputation for his bizarre erotic tastes. So, in the painting "The Great Masturbator" (1929), from a huge human profile, under whose nose a large winged insect sits, appears female face and pressed against the male inguinal zone.

The artist and writer Luis Longueras, who knew Dali from the early 1960s until his death, finds the reasons for a peculiar attitude towards sex in the artist's childhood. According to him, when Dali was a teenager, his father inflicted psychological trauma on him by constantly showing pictures of male genitals mutilated by syphilis.

However, Longueras notes that the artist's preference for observing physical intimacy rather than participating in it himself was perfectly understandable for a man of Dalí's talent.

• The world celebrates the 100th anniversary of Dali

"He was an artist and, therefore, a voyeur - each of us artists needs to be voyeurs. Otherwise, how can we work with human body?" explains Longueras.

However, Dali's interests were not limited to erotica and human forms- they also included features human memory, religion and even the world of science. So, the 1963 picture "G" is painted in honor of Francis Crick and James Watson - scientists who discovered the structure of DNA.

"I think Dali would have liked that he was exhumed, because this is an absolutely surreal event - said Gibson. - He would be very intrigued by the whole process, I'm sure of it."

FIGUERAS (Spain), July 21 - RIA Novosti, Elena Shesternina. In the theater-museum of Salvador Dali in the Catalan city of Figueres, nothing reminds of the turbulent night events that took place here the day before. Most of the tourists who enter the museum building do not even suspect that half a day ago, experts exhumed the body of the great surrealist, who unexpectedly discovered the "illegitimate daughter" Pilar Abel Martinez.

In June, a court in Madrid granted a lawsuit filed by a woman who makes a living predicting the future and solving problems by removing corruption to have the body of Salvador Dalí exhumed for DNA testing. Despite attempts by the Gala Salvador Dalí Foundation and the City Hall of Figueres to cancel or at least delay the exhumation, it was carried out.

At 09.00 on Friday - strictly according to the schedule - the museum was opened for visitors. Tourists calmly walk on the slab, under which the body of the master rests at a depth of two meters - exactly as Dali himself bequeathed - "so that people can walk on his grave." The glass dome over the grave, contrary to plans, was never closed during the exhumation. And so that no one had plans to film the exhumation procedure from the drone through the glass - which was feared in the museum - two tents were put up for the duration of the work - one over the grave, the second over the place where the specialists were working. The tents were removed for the opening of the museum.

A group of French tourists approaches the building of the house-museum. “Yes, I heard that today the body was exhumed and I find it unacceptable. I am a big fan of Dali, I came here for the second time. To disturb the remains of the deceased and also because of some strange woman who has no evidence that Dali was her father? Is it possible to do that?" Isabelle is indignant.

The mayor of the city of Figueres, Marta Felip, in an interview with RIA Novosti admitted that all this hype about the exhumation locals perceived "with great pain." “We could never think of such a situation in our lives. The exhumation of the deceased is something very intimate, but here honor, his memory and respect were literally invaded. This could have been avoided. There were other ways to solve the problem of “paternity.” But for three weeks now ago we understood that exhumation was inevitable," the mayor said.

However, the mayor does not lose optimism and hopes that thanks to this situation, more and more people from all over the world will find out exactly where Dali is buried and come to Figueres. "What happened, it happened. This is the decision of the court. We fulfilled it. There is a blessing in disguise. We have a chance to remind everyone once again where Dali's grave is and where his museum is located," Marta Felip said.

Dissatisfied with the exhumation and in the museum. The management tried to challenge the decision of the Madrid court, but they did not have time to consider the claim, and the Fund had to accept it. “This should not have happened. For each of us who work in the museum, this is a personal tragedy,” says a museum employee who did not want to give her name.

The lawyer of the "seer" Enrique Blankes, in an interview with a RIA Novosti correspondent, suggested that the results of DNA tests (and they will be carried out at the Institute of Toxicology in Madrid) will become known in two weeks. The museum management is more cautious, believing that since August is a holiday period in Spain, it is not necessary to wait for the results before September.

If the results of the analysis do not confirm that Pilar Abel is Dali's daughter, the story will not end there. The lawyer is going to question the reliability and thoroughness of the examination. Blankes assured that "if the specialists can prove that there were no errors during the procedure, then litigation will be terminated."

Meanwhile, the museum's management said that in the event of a negative result of the analysis, "it will take appropriate actions to hold accountable those who led to significant damage and material costs for exhumation," the Dalí Foundation said in a statement. They are sure that "there is no indication that the plaintiff's claims are grounded." "The only thing she presented was a notarized statement of one lady who says that she is a friend of her mother, and who claims that she allegedly told her that the father of her daughter Dali," the head of the Gala Foundation said at a press conference. Salvador Dali" Juan Manuel Sevillano.

If the experts establish that Dali is indeed the biological father of Pilar Abel, then Spain will face new lawsuits. By law, a direct heiress could claim 25% of the fortune of an artist who had no legitimate children. About what amount in question Nobody can say for sure right now. In 1989, Dali's legacy was estimated at $136 million, since then the amount has increased several times. According to some estimates, Abel can claim 300 million. Most of Dali's legacy belongs to the Spanish state - hundreds of paintings, as well as the artist's property in Catalonia. The Dali Foundation says that if the inheritance trial takes place, he will not participate in it. "Pilar Abel can theoretically claim 25% of the inheritance, but this will not be a lawsuit against the Foundation, but against the Spanish state. The Foundation will not be involved in this process," said Albert Segura, the Foundation's lawyer.

The seer's lawyer Enrique Blances claims that Pilar Abel is not interested in money at all, but in establishing the truth. “No, she doesn’t do this for money. She gives interviews for free. Her mother told her that she was Dali’s daughter when Abel was still small,” the lawyer recalled. However, according to another version, which was previously repeatedly voiced by the "seer", she was first told about the "real father" by another woman - her paternal grandmother. “I know that you are not my son’s daughter, you are from a great artist, but I still love you,” the grandmother said, adding that she was “as strange as her father (meaning Dali - ed.)”, says the soothsayer.

The "seer" has already passed her DNA tests. Next in line are the tests of her mother, 87-year-old Antonia Martinez de Haro, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease.

Earlier it was reported that during the exhumation were taken "samples of two large bones, hair and nails" of the artist. It was noted that his body was well preserved thanks to embalming. "Therefore, the famous mustache retained its shape," "it was a very emotional moment," said the general director of the Gala Salvador Dali Foundation, Luis Penuelas.

The court, which will finally decide whether Dali was Pilar Abel's father, will take place on September 18.

Maria Pilar Abel Martinez has been trying for ten years to prove that she is the biological daughter of the artist. This summer, the story reached its climax. The court ruled to exhume the remains and conduct a DNA test. The results were negative.

Who is Pilar Abel

According to the newspaper El Pais, Maria Pilar Abel Martinez is a 61-year-old clairvoyant from Girona, Spain. For more than eight years, she acted as a fortune teller in a local television show. The town of Girona is just an hour's drive from Figueres, where Salvador Dali was born and raised.

According to Abel Martinez, she first heard that Dali was her father from her grandmother. One day she said to her: "I know that you are not the daughter of my son and that you are the daughter of a great artist, but I love you just as much." In addition, Abel claimed that when her grandmother scolded her, she often said: "You are strange, like your father."

In the 1950s, according to Abel, her mother worked as a maid in Port Lligat. Nearby, the Dali family had a house, which later became the artist's museum. Abel claims that Antonia worked for Dali's friends, whom the artist often visited.

Pilar Abel was born on February 1, 1956. Even before that, the mother had left the village and married another man. However, according to Abel, she was born precisely after the secret relationship between the artist and her mother Antonia in 1955.

At that time, Salvador Dali had been living in a civil marriage with his wife for two decades. future wife Gala (nee Elena Dyakonova). Their official wedding took place only in 1958. The couple had no children.

Exchange of Claims

Salvador Dali died in Figueres in 1989 at the age of 84. The artist bequeathed to bury himself so that people could walk on his grave. That is why Dali's remains were walled up under the floor of his theatre-museum in Figueres.

However, after the artist, there were no biological samples left on which to analyze. In 2007, Pilar already tried to conduct a DNA study to establish paternity. Then the material for the examination was the remains of skin and hair, which were preserved in Dali's plaster death mask.

This mask was provided by Salvador Dalí's friend and biographer Robert Descharnes. But, according to Abel, she never received these tests, because their transfer was blocked by the Dali Foundation, which controls and manages the entire legacy of the master.

Nevertheless, back in 2008, in an interview with the Spanish agency EFE, Descharne's son Nicolas said that the doctor who conducted the paternity test told him that the result of the analysis was negative.

In 2015, Abel filed a lawsuit against the Spanish Ministry of Finance and the Gala and Salvador Dalí Foundation. On June 26, 2017, a court in Madrid ordered the exhumation of the artist's body.

And again a fiasco

If the test results were positive, Pilar Abel could claim to bear the name of the great painter. Also, a woman could claim a quarter of Dali's inheritance and copyrights to his work.

During his life, the artist, who is considered one of the most well-known representatives surrealism, created over a hundred works. His most expensive painting at the moment is a portrait of Paul Eluard. This work was sold at Sotheby's for $22 million in 2011.

On July 20, Dali's remains were exhumed. For analysis, samples of hair, nails, teeth were taken, and two long bones were also extracted. However, a DNA test showed that Pilar Abel is not the painter's daughter. The woman herself intends to challenge this decision. She noted that she "does not trust the storage network" of DNA samples.

At the same time, at a meeting on September 18, the court of Madrid confirmed the results of the genetic examination. And the Spanish prosecutor's office petitioned for the recovery of legal costs from Pilar Abel. The prosecution stated that the woman's behavior is "capricious and unreasonable", as well as her doubts about the erroneous results of the DNA test against the Institute of Toxicology.

The prosecutor's application will be considered next week. Then the verdict will be announced.

Timur Fekhretdinov