 Arthur Byne , an art agent living in Madrid , whose biggest client was American newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst , was working for Hearst to acquire an old monastery in 1930 . In 1925 , Byne had bought Hearst the monastery of Santa María la Real de Sacramenia which was dismantled , crated and shipped to New York where it was stored in a warehouse in the Bronx . ( In 1954 it was re @-@ assembled in Florida as a tourist attraction , and was subsequently acquired by the Episcopal Diocese of South Florida and called the St. Bernard de Clairvaux Church . ) Byne signaled Beloso to help him locate one ; Beloso invited him to see the old Óvila monastery in December 1930 , and Byne subsequently sent photographs and sketches to Hearst for approval . Byne listed specific elements , mostly architectural details , to be removed , such as vault ribs , door frames , window embrasures , columns and capitals . Some entire walls of fine facing stones were recommended for removal . He referred to the proposal as " Mountolive " , possibly to misdirect the Spanish authorities who were in charge of protecting historical artifacts . 
