Art restorers work at the painting restoration department of the Prado museum in Madrid on October 7, 2025

Madrid (AFP) - In a quiet space secluded from the throngs of daily visitors to Madrid’s Prado art museum, a team of experts perpetuate an ancient tradition of restoring centuries-old European cultural treasures.

Creations by some of art’s most illustrious names – Goya, Velazquez, Rubens, Caravaggio, Bosch and El Greco – are conserved in the vast, bright space at one of the world’s most-visited museums.

The Prado has always put an emphasis on the conservation and restoration of art since it opened to the public in 1819.

A conservator cleans the sculpture "Apolo" by Italian artist Silvio Cosini at the Prado museum on October 23, 2025

Cutting-edge technology and modern tools to analyse and treat paintings and sculptures allow Almudena, Marta, Maria, Alvaro, Alicia, Elena, Sonia and Eva to maintain the tradition.

The team is capable of caring for the museum’s most prized collections as well as works from other institutions.

In February, the Prado launched the restoration of “Pablo de Valladolid”, an emblematic portrait that Spanish master Velazquez produced in the 17th century.

A conservator works on the restoration of gilded mouldings at the Prado museum's sculpture restoration department on October 23, 2025

But the work will first undergo a deep technical analysis by new equipment, the museum said in a statement.

Scanning technology will allow the experts to identify and locate the materials used by the artist, while multispectral infrared reflectography will reveal details invisible to the naked eye.

Everything contributes to a deeper understanding of the artist’s technique, the work’s state of conservation and preparing its restoration.