We all had a good laugh a couple of weeks ago when we read the story of the old lady who tried to restore a famous 18th-century artwork, and ruined it by turning Jesus into a cross between a monkey and a chimpanzee.

Initially, she wished to remain anonymous, probably because she felt a bit of a fool. She also said that all the coverage in the press was giving her anxiety attacks. Now that she’s “Internet famous” though, things have changed a little bit.

You see, once Reddit, Twitter, 4chan and eventually Facebook caught wind of her little “mishap”, traffic to the church saw a massive spike. Tourists came from all over to see Behold the Monkey, as the painting has now become known. Angry at the hordes of tourists not leaving any donations, the sanctuary started asking a cover charge – and managed to raise €2 000 in only four days.

Out of the woodwork pops Cecilia Giménez, 80-year-old expert art restorer – miraculously cured of her anxiety and fear of her identity being known. With the help of her team of lawyers, she now wants a cut of these takings, because without her contribution there wouldn’t be any tourists. It all seems perfectly logical.

She won’t be pursuing those of us who may have shared her talents with our friends, luckily. The church opposes her claim for a cut, and have retained lawyers.

I’m just glad she managed to cure her anxiety and embarrassment problems. Truly miraculous.

[Source: Ars Technica]