The Vatican has decided to withdraw from sale 6,000 copies of a new papal medal on which the name of Jesus was misspelled.

In an inscription around the edge of the coin, Jesus was spelt with an L instead of a J.

The word “Jesus” is misspelt as “Lesus” in the upper right-hand section of the coin

Keen-eyed experts snapped up a handful of the coins, which were struck in gold, silver and bronze by the Italian mint, before the mistake was noticed.

Vatican coins and medals bearing the face of Pope Francis are bought by collectors all over the world.

New medals are struck when every new pope is elected and they provide a useful source of income for the Vatican, which is undergoing a major spending review under the leadership of Pope Francis.

As news of the mistake travelled, social media users cracked jokes about this new religious figure, “Lesus” Christ. “I blame the Lesuits,” went one tweet while another had “Let us pray Lesus”.