Restoring a piece of well known and valuable art is no simple task. You not only need to have some serious skills in the art department, you also need to understand the history of the art piece and the style of art in which it was created. So with that said, having a professional artist complete restorations is probably best. But sometimes, there are people that claim to be professionals and believe they can take on a restoration of great proportions – and when that happens – the end result is typically a total disaster. Like the restorations below.

Ecce Mono

This has been universally acknowledged as the worst art restoration ever. You almost have to feel bad for the woman who ‘restored’ it. This particular painting quickly gained notoriety thanks to images going viral on social media. It has inspired countless memes and people have even dressed up as the restoration for Halloween.

The fresco painting of Jesus, originally done by Elias Garcia Martinez, was “restored” in 2012. The painting was on display in a cathedral in a small town in Spain, but it started to peel, leaving Jesus looking a little patchy in places. A local 81-year-old woman, Cecilia Jimenez, volunteered to restore the painting to its former glory.

Clearly the restoration took a turn for the worst.

But, the failed restoration ended up bringing tens of thousands of tourists to the cathedral to witness the now infamous painting. The church took advantage of their newfound popularity, selling mugs, t-shirts, and other items bearing the image of the botched Jesus. With the extra money this painting brings in, the church is able to fund a home for senior citizens.

So at least something good came out of this horrific restoration.

Saint George Statue

Another horrific restoration can be found in Spain. This statue of Saint George slaying a dragon has been at the Saint Michael Estella church for nearly 500 years. Understandably, the 16th-century statue had some wear and tear over the years.

In 2018, one over-zealous art teacher took it upon herself to put a fresh coat of paint on the statue. The colors chosen by the woman who ‘restored’ the statue are a bit odd, especially for the statues face. The statue ended up looking like a toy found in a McDonald’s Happy Meal.

The restoration was so bad that the mayor had to step in and take control of the situation since the previously beloved and famous statue was now a laughingstock. In addition to the horrible colors chosen, the kind of paint used by the teacher was wrong, therefore destroying the little original paint that the piece had left.

Luckily, actual restoration experts stepped in to attempt to fix the first botched restoration. However, that came with a cost. A cost of a cool $34,000.

Check out the difference! That is the difference between a professional and a wanna be professional.

Technicolor Spanish Statues

These 15th century wooden statues needed a makeover, but not a florescent, 1980’s vibe paint job.

This crazy paint job on these wooden statues was done by a local tobacco shop owner, Maria Louisa Menendez. A strange choice for this particular undertaking, that’s for sure. What’s even stranger is that these wooden statues were painstakingly restored by a professional, Luis Suárez Saro, in 2002.

What was this woman thinking? Seriously!

Why Maria decided to use hot pink for Mary’s robe and neon green for baby Jesus’ clothing. But that’s not all the bad choices Maria made when ‘restoring’ these statues.

Maria decided to add makeup to the statues faces. The makeup was thick and gross looking. Heavy eyeliner, drawn-on eyebrows, and dark lipstick now grace the faces of these once naturally beautiful statues.

Maria does say that she is not a professional and we couldn’t agree more!

Check out some more botched restorations below!