The elderly woman from Spain who achieved global fame for her infamous repair job on a cherished Jesus Christ fresco has passed away at the age of 94.
Cecilia Giménez, from the town of Borja in northeast Spain, became a global sensation 13 years ago after she undertook to restore a century-old fresco known as Ecce Homo housed within her local church.
Giménez's restoration effort quickly went viral and earned the moniker "Monkey Christ", largely due to the altered depiction of Christ's head looking somewhat like a furry primate.
Local Announcement and Tribute
The 94-year-old's death was announced by the town's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, in a social media post, where he described her as a "great lover of painting from a young age".
"Descansa en paz Cecilia, your memory will live on with us," Arilla wrote.
Arilla further referenced Giménez's "famous restoration of Ecce Homo" in August 2012, which "because of the deteriorated condition it presented, Cecilia, with the best intentions, chose to apply new paint over the original".
The Artwork's Background and the Now-Infamous Intervention
The Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man" in Latin) by 19th century painter Elias Garcia Martinez had resided for over a hundred years in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza.
At the time, Giménez, who was 81 years old, stated that parishioners had "traditionally fixed everything here", and that she had received permission from the local priest to proceed.
She also noted that anybody who came into the Church would have observed she was applying paint to the original image.
A Surprising Tourist Boom
The impact of the restoration spawned the "Ecce Mono" meme and transformed the previously sleepy town of Borja rapidly turn into a major visitor attraction.
The municipality, which had in the past welcomed just five thousand visitors per year, attracted more than 40,000 tourists by 2013, and managed to raise more than €50,000 for charity from the interest.
Currently, local authorities estimate that between 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja each year to see the famous portrait, which is now displayed behind a pane of glass.
Later Life and Local Admiration
Following the initial backlash, backed by local residents and well-wishers around the world, Giménez went on to stage an art exhibition featuring twenty-eight of her personal paintings.
She was commended by the mayor for her generosity and decades of faithful service to the parish.
Ultimately, what began as a sincere but flawed act of restoration forged an improbable piece of pop culture and provided unprecedented tourist revenue to a small Spanish town.
