The Shroud of Turin

Shroud of Turin

It is the single most studied artefact in human history, no other item exemplifies the link between religion and science as the Shroud of Turin does. The Shroud is 14.5 feet long and 3.5 feet wide, blood stained and shows the front and back image of a man who appears to have been crucified. Many believe undoubtedly that it is the linen that held the body of Jesus Christs after he was crucified, however, despite convincing evidence , there is much debate as to whether or not it really is.

Eleven years into the hundred year war just after the great plague had ceased it’s wreck on Europe, on either April 10th or 16th, 1349, French Knight Geoffrey de Charny wrote to Pope Clement VI in which he expressed his desire to build a church in Lirey, France (it is noted that he is already in possession of the Shroud). By 1355, Geoffrey had built the church of Saint Mary in honour of the Holy Trinity who answered his prayers in battle. The Shroud was then first made public when the de Charny family hung it in their church, and it quickly became the main source of revenue, for both the family and Church, as pilgrims from all over Europe paid to see it. When Geoffrey died a year later it was passed on to his son and remained in the de Charny Family for many years until it fell into the hands of the Dukes of Savoy. Then, after many journeys, the Shroud was finally bought to Turin in 1578, and later in 1694 it was placed in a chapel behind the altar in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. This Cathedral was erected specifically to house the Shroud.

As there is far too much evidence surrounding the shroud to be discussed in this brief summary, here is key information. In 1902 Yves Delgae, a French professor of comparative anatomy, took interest in the Shroud after having looked at the first ever photograph of it. He realised that it was a photographic negative and needs to be reversed in order to be seen. This discovery gave him reason to believe that it was...