Botched fresco artist on eBay

Published on 14/12/2012 00:00

The 80-year-old Spanish artist who became famous because of her botched restoration of a Christ fresco in a small-town church is auctioning one of her works on eBay for charity.

Celia Gimenez’s oil painting Las Bodegas de Borja (Borja’s Wine Cellar), was placed on the auction site yesterday. The sale closes on Monday.

Ms Gimenez became a sensation in August when pictures spread on the internet of an Ecce Homo (Behold the Man) mural in a chapel in the town of Borja that she disfigured while trying to restore it. Twitter users redubbed it Ecce Mono (Behold the Monkey).

The painting has since become a tourist attraction and the image has been used on t-shirts and wine labels.

The auction’s proceeds will go to the Catholic charity organisation Caritas.