Spanish Parishioner Who Gained Notoriety for Mishandling a Famous Fresco Restoration Dies at the Age of 94
The Spanish parishioner who made international headlines for her poorly executed restoration attempt on a valuable religious painting has passed away at the age of 94.
The woman, a resident of the town of Borja in northeast Spain, became a global sensation thirteen years ago after she attempted to restore a 100-year-old fresco titled Ecce Homo located in her parish church.
Giménez's handiwork quickly went viral and earned the moniker "Potato Jesus", because the resulting depiction of Christ's head bearing a resemblance to a hairy monkey.
Official Confirmation and Homage
The nonagenarian's passing was confirmed by the town's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, via an online statement, where he described her as a "passionate enthusiast of painting from a young age".
"Rest in peace Cecilia, your memory will live on with us," Arilla wrote.
Arilla further referenced Giménez's "famous restoration of Ecce Homo" in the summer of 2012, which "because of the deteriorated condition it presented, Cecilia, acting in good faith, chose to apply new paint over the original".
The Artwork's Background and the Now-Infamous Act
The Ecce Homo ("This is the Man" in Latin) by nineteenth-century artist Elias Garcia Martinez had resided for over a hundred years in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church close to Zaragoza.
At the time, Giménez, who was 81 years old, explained that parishioners had "traditionally fixed everything here", and that she had received permission from the local priest to proceed.
She also noted that anyone who entered the church would have observed she was applying paint to the existing image.
An Unexpected Economic Lifeline
The aftermath of the restoration spawned the "Monkey Christ" meme and transformed the previously sleepy town of Borja rapidly turn into a significant visitor attraction.
The municipality, which had in the past seen only 5,000 tourists per year, received over 40,000 tourists by 2013, and managed to raise over €50,000 for charity from the attention.
Today, officials estimate that somewhere around 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja each year to see the notorious portrait, which is now displayed behind a pane of glass.
Legacy and Local Admiration
Following the initial backlash, with support from the townspeople and others around the world, Giménez went on to hold an exhibition of her paintings featuring twenty-eight of her own works.
She was commended by Borja's mayor for her generosity and decades of dedication to the church.
In the end, what began as a sincere but flawed art repair forged an improbable piece of pop culture and provided unprecedented tourist revenue to a humble Spanish town.
