The botched mosaics, some of which date to the second century, include world-famous panels depicting the sacrifice of Isaac and Narcissus.

Some tiles were allegedly misplaced, others replaced by tiles of colours that were different from the originals.

Turkey's Culture Ministry is now investigating the restoration work carried out at Hatay Archaeology Museum, which is home to one of the world's largest collections of mosaics.

Mosaic craftsman Mehmet Daşkapan pointed out to his local newspaper how markedly different the mosaics appeared from the valuable originals.

"Valuable pieces from the Roman period have been ruined," Mr Daskapan told the Antakya Gazetesi.

"They have become caricatures of their former selves. Some are in an especially poor condition and have lost their originality and value."

But restorers have denied all claims of wrongdoing and argued that the before and after images were manipulated in the Turkish press, The Guardian reported.

All restoration work at the site has been temporarily suspended.

In 2012, a Spanish grandmother's bungled attempt to restore a century-old fresco of Jesus Christ in her local church in Zaragoza, in north-eastern Spain, turned into an unlikely art sensation.

Eighty-one-year-old Cecilia Gimenez's shocking DIY restoration job left Jesus, who was wearing a crown of thorns and gazing sorrowfully towards heaven, looking more like a pale monkey with a half beard.

Some labelled her handiwork the worst art restoration of all time, while the BBC described the result as looking like "a crayon sketch of a very hairy monkey in an ill-fitting tunic".

However, a decision to call in a team of expert restorers to return the fresco, Ecce Homo (Behold The Man) to its pre-restoration glory was met with online indignation.

More than 10,000 people signed a petition to retain the monkey-like face in the church, which has since become a tourist attraction in the town.