Spanish-born Woman Who Gained Notoriety for Mishandling a Famous Fresco Repair Has Died at the Age of 94
The elderly woman from Spain who made international headlines for her poorly executed repair job on a cherished Jesus Christ fresco has passed away at the age 94.
Cecilia Giménez, from the town of Borja in northeast Spain, became a global sensation thirteen years ago after she undertook to restore a 100-year-old fresco known as Ecce Homo located in her local church.
Giménez's handiwork quickly went viral and earned the moniker "Monkey Christ", largely due to the resulting likeness of Christ's head bearing a resemblance to a furry primate.
Official Confirmation and Homage
The 94-year-old's death was confirmed by the town's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, in a social media post, where he acknowledged her as a "great lover of painting from a very early age".
"Rest in peace Cecilia, your memory will live on with us," the mayor posted.
Arilla also paid tribute to Giménez's "famous restoration of Ecce Homo" in the summer of 2012, which "due to the deteriorated condition it presented, Cecilia, with the best intentions, decided to repaint the work over".
The Artwork's Background and the Fateful Act
The Ecce Homo ("This is the Man" in Latin) painted by 19th century artist Elias Garcia Martinez had been held for more than a century in the Santuario de la Misericordia near Zaragoza.
In 2012, Giménez, who was 81 years old, explained that church members had "always repaired everything here", and that she had received permission from the local priest to do the work.
She added at the time that anybody who entered the Church would have seen she was applying paint to the original artwork.
An Unexpected Tourist Boom
The impact of the repaint job spawned the "Ecce Mono" meme and saw the once quiet town of Borja rapidly turn into a major visitor attraction.
The municipality, which had in the past seen only 5,000 tourists per year, attracted over 40,000 tourists by 2013, and generated over €50,000 for charity from the attention.
Today, officials say that somewhere around 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja every year to see the notorious portrait, which is now protected by a protective shield of glass.
Later Life and Community Admiration
Following the initial backlash, backed by the townspeople and well-wishers around the world, Giménez later stage an art exhibition featuring twenty-eight of her own works.
She was commended by Borja's mayor for her generosity and years of dedication to the parish.
In the end, what began as a sincere but flawed act of restoration created an unlikely cultural icon and brought remarkable attention and resources to a humble Spanish town.
