Michael Cartwright discovered the face of Jesus on his bottle of cider

"When I saw it I got goose pimples," 35-year-old Mr Cartwright said yesterday. "I have no doubt it is the face of Jesus. You can even see his beard and hair."

Mr Cartwright, a taxi driver from Darlington, noticed the extraordinary image while drinking with a group of friends at his local, the Tanners Hall.

"As the barmaid removed the cap to the cider I suddenly realised what was staring back at me," he added

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One of Mr Cartwright's friends took a photograph. It was only the following morning that he realised how clear the image was. But by then it was too late to retrieve the bottle.

"It ended up getting collected by a barmaid when no one was paying attention and thrown away," said Mr Cartwright.

Drinkers at the Darlington pub were amazed to see the face at the top of the cider bottle

"I'm not sure what message Jesus was sending and maybe now we'll never know."

Had they only held on to the bottle it could have been worth considerably more than the £2.49 it cost over the bar.

Four years ago on eBay, American Diana Duyser sold a piece of ten-year-old toasted cheese sandwich - which appeared to feature the face of the Virgin Mary - for £15,000.