Hurtado was walking through the city centre when he spotted a framed canvas apparently abandoned on the street. "I only picked it up because I liked the frame, not the painting itself," he told the broadcaster SER Andalucía.

However, it was only after returning home to the village of Puebla de Soto that curiosity got the better of him. Using an artificial intelligence tool on his mobile phone to scan the image, he discovered that the canvas was an authentic work by Joaquín Sorolla, one of Spain’s most celebrated Impressionist painters.

A potentially costly mistake

As Hurtado was discovering the painting's true identity, Spain's National Police were already investigating its disappearance. The rightful owners had logged a report after accidentally leaving the artwork on the pavement while loading their car.

Desperate to recover the heirloom, a member of the family had spent the weekend putting up handwritten appeals in both Spanish and English across Seville, pleading for information regarding an item of "great sentimental value". Crucially, the posters made no mention of Sorolla’s name.

Realising that the painting held immense financial as well as sentimental value, Hurtado immediately contacted the police to report his find.

Thanks to his quick thinking and honesty, the artwork has now been safely returned to its owners. Police noted that without his intervention, the masterpiece could easily have been ruined by the elements, discarded as rubbish, or picked up by someone unaware of its cultural significance.