🔗 Share this article

The Spanish parishioner who achieved global fame for her poorly executed repair job on a valuable religious painting has passed away at the age of 94.

Cecilia Giménez, from the town of Borja in northeast Spain, rose to prominence 13 years ago after she undertook to repaint a century-old fresco titled Ecce Homo located in her local church.

Giménez's restoration effort quickly went viral and was dubbed "Potato Jesus", because the resulting depiction of Christ's head bearing a resemblance to a hairy monkey.

Local Confirmation and Homage

The 94-year-old's death was announced by Borja's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, via an online statement, where he described her as a "great lover of painting from a young age".

"Rest in peace Cecilia, we will always remember you," the mayor posted.

Arilla further referenced Giménez's "famous restoration of Ecce Homo" in the summer of 2012, which "due to the deteriorated condition it was in, Cecilia, acting in good faith, decided to apply new paint over the original".

The Artwork's Background and the Fateful Act

The Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man" in Latin) by nineteenth-century artist Elias Garcia Martinez had been held for over a century in the Santuario de la Misericordia close to Zaragoza.

At the time, Giménez, who was 81 years old, stated that parishioners had "always repaired everything here", and that she had been given the go-ahead from the parish priest to proceed.

She added at the time that anybody who came into the Church would have observed she was painting over the original image.

A Surprising Tourist Boom

The impact of the repaint job spawned the "Ecce Mono" internet phenomenon and saw the previously sleepy town of Borja quickly become a significant tourist destination.

The town, which had in the past seen only 5,000 tourists per year, attracted more than 40,000 tourists by 2013, and managed to raise over €50,000 for charity from the attention.

Currently, officials estimate that somewhere around 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja every year to view the notorious painting, which is now displayed behind a protective shield of glass.

Later Life and Community Admiration

Following the initial backlash, with support from local residents and others around the world, Giménez later stage an art exhibition featuring twenty-eight of her personal works.

She was praised by Borja's mayor for her generosity and decades of faithful service to the church.

Ultimately, what began as a well-intentioned but flawed act of restoration created an improbable piece of pop culture and brought unprecedented tourist revenue to a humble Spanish town.