For the past few years, there have been some blank spaces on the normally busy walls of the Southworth Library.

Back in 2013, five oil paintings done by world-renowned artist and former Dartmouth resident Ernest Ludvig Ipsen were removed from the walls due to deterioration. Library officials had decided to have the early-1900s portraits sent out to get fixed up.

On Thursday, those paintings returned to the library after spending two years in Maine being refurbished.

“It’s been a long process,” said Lynne Antunes, director of libraries in Dartmouth. “It’s exciting. They’ve been gone for a while. Being in storage is no good for them.”

Antunes said the paintings were literally falling apart, including the frames.

“The paint was peeling,” said Antunes, “especially on the faces. I think the skin tones look a little better now. One painting had a tear in it.”

Ipsen, who was originally from Malden, summered at his home in Nonquitt for 14 years. He studied at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts for three years, and was elected a member of the National Academy in 1923. Other paintings include portraits of President William Howard Taft, former Massachusetts Governor John D. Long, and two of General Robert E. Lee. He won several prizes for his artwork, including the Lippincott Award at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

The library’s Ipsens, which were donated by the Crocker family of Dartmouth, include portraits of Ipsen’s wife, mother, and father, as well as one of Elizabeth Swift, a former Dartmouth Library trustee. A women in the painting titled “Recital” has yet to be identified.

“We’re not really sure who she is,” said Antunes.

Antunes said the job was paid for through a variety of means. A few years ago, Town Meeting approved using the money from the sale of one of Ipsen’s works and another sculpture to help pay for the project. She said they’d been saving some of the library’s state aid from past years to make up the difference.

The library itself is filled with art, including artists with local connections such as Harry Neyland, Betty Knowles and Anne Barrow.

“There’s a variety,” said Antunes.

“They did a beautiful job. I’m amazed,” said Head Custodian Joe Sousa, who has worked at the library for 31 years. “They were in really bad shape. They look great.”