Salvador Dali’s body exhumed for DNA tests

Salvador Dali’s body is exhumed for DNA tests to settle a paternity case. Samples were taken from the surrealist painter’s teeth, bones and nails in a four-hour operation according to forensic experts.

The exhumation followed a court order on behalf of a woman who says her mother had an affair with the painter. The exhumation went ahead despite objection from local authorities and the foundations carrying Dali’s name, both of which claimed that not enough notice had been given ahead of the exhumation.

If she is proved right, she could claim part of the Dali’s estate, currently owned by the Spanish state.

Dali who died in 1989 at the age of 85, was buried in a crypt in a museum dedicated to his life and work in Figueres, in north-eastern Spain.

Pilar Abel Martinez, 61 claims she is Salvador’s daughter after her mum’s fling with him.