Bronze Casting of Picasso's Guernica

On the 26th of April 2007 it will be 70 years since the small Spanish town of Guernica was blitzed by German and Italian bombers in support of General Franco during the Spanish civil war. Picasso's painting of the same name was, according to his wishes, returned to Spain only after it became a Democracy.

These photographs are of a bronze casting of Picasso's classic, made at CENIM (Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Metalurgicas) in Madrid, as a present for Harry Bhadeshia from Carlos Garcia de Andres.

Shortly after Spain became a democracy, a small section of the army occupied parliament, but King Juan Carlos went on national television in his military attire, and ordered the army to remain in barracks. The coup attempt collapsed.

For single-handedly saving the fledgling democracy in Spain, King Juan Carlos was awarded the highest honour of Cambridge University, an honorary degree.