Spanish judge orders exhumation of Salvador Dalí for paternity test

A Spanish judge has ordered the exhumation of Salvador Dalí to obtain DNA samples from the surrealist painter, who died in 1989 and is buried in Figueres, after a woman claiming to be his biological daughter filed a paternity suit. Maria Pilar Abel Martínez, born in 1956, alleges that Dalí had a clandestine relationship with a maid in Port-Lligat, where the artist had his studio. Her mother reportedly revealed the affair before her death. Abel has been pursuing recognition since 2007 and previously worked as a tarot card reader on a Girona television show. The exhumation is scheduled for early July. The Gala-Dalí Foundation has not commented publicly but has taken legal precautions. If proven, Abel would become an heir and could claim copyright royalties currently managed by Nicolàs Decharnes, son of Dalí's former secretary. Abel's lawyer, Francesc Bueno, previously represented a waiter claiming to be the son of King Juan Carlos I. Another claimant, José Van Roy Dalí, also asserts he is Dalí's legitimate heir and works as an artist, though his claims have been disputed.