A MULTI-million euro facelift at one of Spain’s iconic landmarks has landed this Galician town as the butt of a joke.

Tourists in Santiago de Compostela have been left gawking at a rather unusual site next to the Santiago Cathedral: a collection of 16th century gargoyles whose bare backsides appear to have been skewered by a giant copper wire. 

The controversial move is now being dubbed as the ‘sodomite restoration’ due to locals and art lovers claiming that the figures look ‘sodomized’ and ‘colonoscopedized.’ 

Renaissance-era gargoyles were placed along the top of the building to drain rainwater. 

The latest revamp of the Parador hotel ended with all 16 stone creatures looking like kebabs.

READ MORE: Researchers discover 134 shipwrecks off Gibraltar – making the bay one of Europe’s richest underwater graveyards

Long, protruding copper tubes were installed to prevent damage to the Baroque balconies below. 

The offensive pipework was part of the restoration plan for the Hostal dos Reis Catolicos, which is believed to be one of Spain’s oldest hotels and overlooks the world renowned Praza do Obradoria square next to the Santiago Cathedral. 

Public outrage has resulted from the expensive intervention, with people demanding to know who approved of the restoration decision. 

A combination of residents, historians and architects have accused the project planners of vandalising one of Galicia’s most treasured heritage sites. 

READ MORE: Spain’s Pedro Sanchez rules out snap elections and backs former PM Zapatero amid investigation

Carlos Henrique Fernandez Coto, president of the Apatrigal heritage group, said the pipes are ‘visually aggressive’ and an eyesore that fails to respect the original architecture of the UNESCO-listed square. 

A leading ‘gargoyle expert’ has even come forward to call the new build a ‘disaster.’

Now regional authorities and the state’s tourism branch are scrambling to find a solution to the cheeky issue.

Previously, the gargoyles went nearly unnoticed by passerbys. 

Now the so-called atrocity has become the main backdrop for selfies and visitors hyper-zooming in on their phones to get a glimpse of the speared backsides. 

READ MORE: Spain orders betting markets Polymarket and Kalshi blocked for operating without a gambling licence

Officials insist that the pipes are reversible and that no structural damage has been done. 

However, it seems the resounding response is wondering how millions of euros went into transforming a famous statue to look like it lost a fight in the plumbing aisle.  

Gargoyle expert and creator of Gargopedia, Dolores Herro, claimed that these figures are ‘not just a gutter,’ but an image that ‘evokes emotion like any other work of art worthy of respect and protection.’

READ MORE: Costa del Sol beachgoers face hefty fines for peeing in the sea, bringing dogs to beaches or ‘playing by the water’

The Santiago de Compostela Archcathedral Basilica was named a World Heritage Site in Galicia, Spain. 

It’s said to be the burial place of Saint James the Great, one of Jesus’ apostles. 

Click here to read more Galicia News from The Olive Press.