They have been likened to children’s toys or the contents of a Kinder Surprise. But these are the newly “restored” 15th and 16th century wooden carvings of an Asturias church, following the intervention of a well-meaning parishioner.

Church authorities have been sent to survey the damage after the resident in the village of Rañadoiro was given permission to take the carvings home for a revamp, resulting in what specialists have called “an absolute disaster”.

A figure of the Virgin Mary - previously in a plain wooden finish - now sports a shocking pink robe, the Infant Jesus in her arms dressed in garish green.

In another carving, the mother of Christ has been turned from brunette to platinum blonde, her clothes updated to a soft rose hue in a makeover that has drawn comparisons to Barbie.

The government of the autonomous community in northern Spain said Friday it had opened an investigation into why the parishioner was allowed to undertake the restoration works despite having no experience.