[[image:Shroud of Turin face.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Negative image of the face of the Shroud; the photographic qualities of the Shroud were unknown until 1898.]]
The '''Shroud of Turin''' (in Italian, ''la Sacra Sindone'') is the most studied artifact in the history of the world, causing some . It is a burial cloth having attributes from the time and place of [[agnosticJesus]] or [[Atheism|atheist]] [[scientist]]s to convert to [[Christianity]].<ref>[http://www.shroud.com/mrinobnf.pdf]</ref> Other scientists, who have not converted, still consider with blood stains and the Shroud to be the authentic burial cloth for image of an executed man. [[Jesus ChristLiberal denial]]of its authenticity requires implausible conspiracy theories.
The Shroud contains real blood stains consisting [[Forensic]] evidence indicates that it is the image of human male man who [[DNAscourge]]d and crucified, and a yet (as described about Jesus in the [[blood typeBible]] that is AB - the same rare blood type found on the face covering for Jesus now kept in Spain. The height ) without breaking of the man was between 5victim'9" and 5'11"; his weight, 168-180 pounds; his age, between 30 and 45 years olds legs as done to expedite a [[Roman Empire|Roman]] execution.<refname="Forensics">[httpshttp://www.shroudshroudstory.com/meacham2forensics.htm Excellent scientific article about the Shroud]</ref> Coins visible only to modern technology had been placed over The image was formed after the man's eyesblood staining, suggesting that the image was caused by an ancient Roman tradition not known to historians until modern archaeological excavations revealed the practiceafter-death flash of light like a negative in photography.<ref>Coins over the eyes were particularly necessary to keep the eyes shut if the person died with his eyes open.</ref> "The coin over the right eye was minted by [[Pontius Pilate]], and the coin over the left eye was minted only in A.D. 29, merely Shroud of Turin is a few years before the estimated date of the [[Crucifixion]]negative image.<ref name="Coins">http[https://www.shroudstoryshroud.com/faq-coinspiczek3.htm]</ref> The angle of image is scientifically precise in ways unknown to any medieval forgers; the man's arms during thumbs are not visible because the [[crucifixion]] can be inferred from nails were through the flow of blood seen on wrists, not through the Shroud: 65° for one arm; 55° for the other. The cloth was a finely woven linen that would have been available to a wealthy man hands as described in mistakenly thought until the [[Gospels]]20th century.<ref name="Forensics"/>
There is overwhelming [[forensic]] evidence on the Shroud indicating that it is the image of man who was both [[scourge]]d and crucified, yet (as described in the [[Bible]]) without the breaking of the victim's leg as commonly done as part of the punishment.<ref name="Forensics">http://www.shroudstory.com/forensics.htm</ref> The bloodstains on the Shroud were formed before the image was made. The image is scientifically precise in a way unknown to any medieval forgers: the thumbs are not visible because the nails were through the wrist, not through the hands as mistakenly thought until the 20th century.<ref name="Forensics"/> The long cloth is presently kept in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in [[Turin]], [[Italy]].<ref>[http://www.shroud.com/]</ref> An [[agnostic]] [[British]] scholar studied the ''Shroud of Turin'' and concluded in his book, ''The Sign'' (2012), that the Shroud is authentic and was even the basis of [[disciples]]' acceptance of the [[Resurrection]].<ref>httphttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/9162459/Mystery-solved-Turin-Shroud-linked-to-Resurrection-of-Christ.html</ref>The shroud has caused some [[agnostic]] or [[Atheism|atheist]] [[scientist]]s to convert to [[Christianity]].<ref>[http://www.shroud.com/mrinobnf.pdf]</ref> Other scientists, who have not converted, still consider the Shroud to be the authentic burial cloth for [[Jesus Christ]]. Some refer to the Shroud as the "Fifth [[the Gospels|Gospel]]."
==Description==
The wrists and feet bear large bloodstains consistent with historical descriptions of [[crucifixion]]. The feet themselves are placed one on top of the other within the image; both front and dorsal images display a single large bloodstain, indicating one nail was driven through both feet upon the cross. The left wrist likewise displays a large bloodstain; however, the left hand covers the right, preventing a view of the wound there. Blood flows are present on both lower arms, displayed to flow in a direction as if the victim was hanging on a cross. A single large bloodstain is also present on the right side of the chest - nearly-obliterated by the 1532 burn damage - and appears to have been mixed with a clear liquid from the body. Blood stains are also present about the [[scalp]], and the marks of a severe beating are evident upon the face.
The Shroud contains blood stains consisting of human male [[DNA]], and a [[blood type]] that is AB - the same rare blood type<ref>Less than 5% of Europeans have AB blood type.</ref> found on the [[Sudarium of Oviedo|face covering for Jesus]] preserved in Spain,<ref name="Oviedo">The [[Shroud of Oviedo]].</ref> and the same rare blood type common in "68 skeletons of Jewish residents from 1,600 to 2,000 years ago in and around [[Jerusalem]]."<ref>http://www.rhesusnegative.net/staynegative/blood-types-ancient-hebrews/</ref> The height of the man was between 5'9" and 5'11"; his weight, 168-180 pounds; his age, between 30 and 45 years old.<ref>[https://www.shroud.com/meacham2.htm Excellent scientific article about the Shroud]</ref> Coins visible only to modern technology had been placed over the man's eyes, an ancient Roman tradition not known to historians until modern archaeological excavations revealed the practice.<ref>Coins over the eyes were particularly necessary to keep the eyes shut if the person died with his eyes open.</ref> The coin over the right eye was minted by [[Pontius Pilate]], and the coin over the left eye was minted only in A.D. 29, merely a few years before the estimated date of the [[Crucifixion]].<ref name="Coins">http://www.shroudstory.com/faq-coins.htm</ref> The angle of the man's arms during the [[crucifixion]] can be inferred from the flow of blood seen on the Shroud: 65° for one arm; 55° for the other. The cloth was a finely woven linen that would have been available to a wealthy man as described in the [[Gospels]], and was cut from the same fabric containing the same pollen as the face covering preserved separately in Spain.<ref name="Oviedo"/>
== DNA Testing ==
== Dating the Shroud ==
Raymond N. Rogers, a retired [[chemist]] from the [[Los Alamos National Laboratory]] in [[New Mexico]], studied the Shroud and declared, "The chemistry says it was a real shroud, the blood spots on it are real blood, and the technology that was used to make that piece of cloth was exactly what [[Pliny the Elder ]] reported from his time," about A.D. 70. "It's a shroud from the right time, but you're never going to find out (through science) if it was used on a person named [[Jesus]]," Rogers said.<ref>http://bibleprobe.com/</ref>
[[Carbon dating]] test results conflict with each other and thus are not credible. In 1988, a small snippet of the Shroud was performed, '''''but the "C-14 results of the three labs falls outside the bounds of the Pearson's chi-square test," illustrating a flaw in the dating''''' that was likely due to a repair seam that ran diagonally "through the area from which the sample was taken."<ref>http://www.juliantrubin.com/encyclopedia/bible/shroud_of_turin.html</ref> A peer-reviewed scientific paper later demonstrated the invalidity of those results, suggesting instead that the Shroud is between 1,300 and 3,000 years old,<ref>Rogers, Raymond N., "Studies on the radiocarbon sample from the Shroud of Turin". Thermochimica Acta, Volume 425 Issue 1–2, pp. 189-194 (Jan. 20, 2005)[http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6THV-4DTBVHC-1&_user=10&_handle=B-WA-A-W-WE-MsSAYWA-UUA-AAUYYDZUYC-AAUZVCZYYC-YZEWAVVVC-WE-U&_fmt=full&_coverDate=01%2F20%2F2005&_rdoc=26&_orig=browse&_srch=%23toc%235292%232005%23995749998%23553672!&_cdi=5292&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=3d89246a5d4144616be7657f0d83b6cf]</ref><ref>Mark Antonacci "Resurrection of the Shroud: New Scientific, Medical, and Archeological Evidence"</ref> disproving the 1988 results that claimed that the Shroud originated between A.D. 1238 and 1430.
:''He stooped down and looked in, and saw the shroud stretched around nothing, but did not go in.
:''Then Peter came after him, and went into the tomb, and saw the empty shroud lying there, and the facecloth, that had been around His head. The facecloth was not lying with the shroud, but was rolled up in a place apart from them.
:''Then that other student went in also, the one who had come to the tomb first. He saw, and believed. For they still did not know the Scripture that said that He must rise again from the dead.'' - [[John 15-21 (Translated)#Chapter 20|John 20:1-9]]; [[CBP]] <ref>(retrieved: May 25, 2010)''.</ref>
====Bardesane of Edessa====
According to a paper by Dr. Petrus Soons scientific research of some of the photographs of the shroud show an oval object under the beard of the image. After much research three cursive letters were identified and translated from the Hebrew. The meaning of the translation was, "The Lamb," a name in which Jesus was referred to in the New Testament.<ref>[http://74.125.93.132/search?q=cache%3ACtDFWbA8AfIJ%3Awww.ohioshroudconference.com%2Fpapers%2Fp24.pdf+THE+SHROUD+OF+TURIN%2C+THE+HOLOGRAPHIC+EXPERIENCE+By+DR.+PETRUS+SOONS&hl=en&gl=us Dr. Soons Paper]</ref> This finding now makes the person on the shroud exclusively identified with Christ.
== Critics Criticisms ==
Many of the There have been many arguments by modern skeptics against the authenticity of the Shroud , some of which have been debunked and disprovendisproved. For example, some claimed that a misspelling on one of the coins over an eye could not be authentic, but in fact several other coins having the same misspelling have since been found.<ref name="Coins"/>
Over the centuries there have been critics and doubters of the Shroud being the authentic burial cloth of Jesus. One of the earliest unbelievers known critics was Pierre d'Arcis, Bishop of Troyes who wrote a scathing letter to the pope in 1389 claiming that the Shroud was a "cunning" painting and that the artist had been discovered.<ref>The Shroud, Ian Wilson, 2010, page 102.</ref> A harsh critic of the Catholic Church, [[John Calvin]], repeatedly ranted against relics and he wrote against the Shroud in 1543:
:''"How is it possible that those sacred historians, who carefully related all the miracles that took place at Christ's death, should have omitted to mention one so remarkable as the likeness of the body of our Lord remaining on its wrapping sheet? This fact undoubtedly deserved to be recorded. St John, in his Gospel, relates even how St Peter, having entered the sepulchre, saw the linen clothes lying on one side, and the napkin that was about his head on the other; but he does not say that there was a miraculous impression of our Lord's figure upon these clothes, and it is not to be imagined that he would have omitted to mention such a work of God if there had been any thing of this kind."''<ref>[[John Calvin]]: ''Traité des Reliques'', Geneve 1543, translated by '''Valerian Krasinski''': ''A treatise on Relics'', Edingburgh 1854</ref>
The flaw in Calvin's argument, of courseHowever, it is also reasonable to say that the disciples had no reason to study the Shroud at the time, and no access to modern photographic equipment; they had far greater concerns during the chaotic period after Christ's Resurrection. Another argument against the legitimacy of this artifact is based on the account of John, as mentioned by Calvin above. {{cquote|...[Simon Peter] saw the linen cloths lying there, and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself. -<small>{{Bible ref|John|20|6-7|version=NKJV}}</small>This account clearly says that the cloth around his head was separate from the cloth around the rest of his body. Some translations even refer to strips of cloth which had been wrapped around him, rather than one solid cloth.{{cquote|[Simon Peter] saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head -<small>{{Bible ref|John|20|6b-7a|version=NIV}}</small> These arguments have been used by a variety of people to say that scripture itself disproves the claims of the Catholic church.<br /><br />
Another critic was the scientist Walter McCrone (1906-2002), who insisted that it was a painting; this possibility has been thoroughly disproven.<ref>[http://www.shroud.com/piczek.htm Disproof that the Shroud is a painting, as explained by a professional artist]</ref>
== Replication ==
Luigi Garlaschelli, professor of organic chemistry at the University of Pavia, announced that he had made a full size reproduction of the Shroud of Turin using only medieval technologies on October 5, 2009. Garlaschelli placed a linen sheet over a volunteer and then rubbed it with an acidic pigment. The shroud was then aged in an oven before being washed to remove the pigment. He then added blood stains, scorches and water stains to replicate the original. The image on the reproduction would closely match that of the Turin Shroud with differences explained as the result of natural fading over the centuries.<ref>[httphttps://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5943HL20091005 Italian scientist reproduces Shroud of Turin]</ref> But according to noted sindonologist Giulio Fanti, "the image in discussion does not match the main fundamental properties of the Shroud image, in particular at thread and fiber level but also at macroscopic level."<ref>[http://www.acheiropoietos.info/abstracts/talks-image_formation.html]</ref> Further criticism of Garlaschelli's replica has come from shroud scholars Peter Soons <ref>[http://shroudofturin.wordpress.com/2009/10/09/why-the-italian-fake-does-not-reproduce-the-shroud-of-turin/]</ref> and Thibault Heimburger.<ref>[http://www.shroud.com/pdfs/thibault-lg.pdf]</ref>
== References ==
{{reflist}}
== Sources See also ==*[[Essay:Quantifying Openmindedness]]*[[Mystery:Did Jesus Write the Epistle to the Hebrews?]]
*[http://www.shroud.com/pdfs/guscin3.pdf Sermon of Gregory Referendarius, Archdeacon of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, August, 944]
*[http://www.shroudstory.com/shroud-of-turin-picture-01.htm Amazing Details about the Shroud]
*[http://www.shroud.com/faq.htm FAQs about the Shroud]
== See also ==
*[[Essay:Quantifying Openmindedness]]
*[[Mystery:Did Jesus Write the Epistle to the Hebrews?]]
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