The Authentication of the Turin Shroud:    An Issue in Archaeological Epistemology    Part 2

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Last Updated By Endtime Prophecy Net : October 1, 2011



By William Meacham - Archaeologist

CURRENT ANTHROPOLOGY - Vol. 24 - N'' 3 - (June 1983)

Published by the University of Chicago Press

Copyright 1983 by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for
Anthropological Research


SCIENTIFIC ANALYSES

Direct examination of the Shroud by scientific means began
in 1969-73 with the appointment of an 11-member Turin
Commission (1976) to advise on the preservation of the relic
and on specific testing which might be undertaken. Five of
its members were scientists, and preliminary studies of
samples of the cloth were conducted by them in 1973. A much
more detailed examination of the Shroud was carried out by a
group of American scientists in 1978-81 as the Shroud of
Turin Research Project (Culliton 1978, Bortin 1980,
Stevenson and Habermas 1981, Schwalbe and Rogers 1982).

Samples of pollen collected from the Shroud by commission
member Frei (1978) yielded identifications of 49 species of
plants, representative of specific phytogeographical
regions. In addition to 16 species of plants found in
northern Europe, Frei identified 13 species of halophyte and
desert plants "very characteristic of or exclusive to the
Negev and Dead Sea area." A further 20 plant types were
assigned to the Anatolian steppes, particularly the region
of southwestern Turkey-northern Syria, and the Istanbul
area. Frei concluded that the Shroud must have been exposed
to air in the past in Palestine, Turkey, and Europe.
Suggestions that the Shroud pollen derives from
long-distance wind-borne deposits or from dust from the
Crusaders' boots do not merit serious discussion.

The cloth itself has been described (Raes 1976) as a
three-to-one herringbone twill, a common weave in antiquity
but generally used in silks of the first centuries A.D.
rather than linen. The thread was hand-spun and hand-loomed;
after ca. 1200, most European thread was spun on the wheel.
Minute traces of cotton fibers were discovered, an
indication that the Shroud was woven on a loom also used for
weaving cotton. (The use of equipment for working both
cotton and linen would have been permitted by the ancient
Jewish ritual code whereas wool and linen would have been
worked on different looms to avoid the prohibited "mixing of
kinds.") The cotton was of the Asian Gossypum herbaceum, and
some commentators have construed its presence as conclusive
evidence of a Middle Eastern origin. While not common in
Europe until much later, cotton was being woven in Spain as
early as the 8th century and in Holland by the 12th.

The Turin Commission conducted a series of tests aimed at
clarifying the nature of the image. Thread samples were
removed from the "blood" and image areas for laboratory
investigation. Conventional and electron microscopic
examination revealed an absence of heterogeneous coloring
material or pigment. The image and "blood" stains were
reported to have penetrated only the top fibrils; there had
been no capillary action, and no material was caught in the
crevices between threads. Both paint and blood seemed to be
ruled out, and magnification up to 50,000 times showed the
image to consist of fine yellow-red granules seemingly
forming part of the fibers themselves and defying
identification. Finally, standard forensic tests for
haematic residues of blood yielded negative results.

The Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP) formed around a
nucleus of scientists studying the Shroud by means of
computer enhancement and image analysis. Jackson et al.
(1977) scanned the image with a microdensitometer to record
lightness variations in the image intensity and found a
correlation with probable cloth-to-body distance, assuming
that the Shroud was draped loosely over the corpse. They
concluded that the image contains three-dimensional
information, and confirmation was obtained by the use of a
VP-8 Image Analyzer to convert shades of image intensity
into vertical relief. Unlike ordinary photographs or
paintings, the Shroud image converted into an undistorted
three-dimensional figure, a phenomenon which suggested that
the image-forming process acted uniformly through space over
the body, front and back, and did not depend on contact of
cloth with body at every point. Computer analysis
(Tamburelli 1981) of the body image also revealed that it
was formed nondirectionally, whereas the scourge marks
exhibited a radiation from two centers to the left and right
of the body, the former being somewhat higher than the
latter. Enlargements of the scourge marks revealed an
extraordinary detail consisting of minute scratches.

The Shroud face is also highly detailed, and the relief
figure constructed therefrom had an extraordinary clarity
and lifelike appearance. Retraction of the hair and beard
where a chin band might have been ties has been noted. Flat,
button-like objects interpreted as coins appear on both
eyes; the protuberances stand out prominently when processed
by isodensity enhancement (Stevenson and Habermas
1981:fig.17). Independently of STURP, another researcher
(Filas 1980), working with third-generation enlargements of
the 1931 photographs, noted the presence of a design over
the right eye, apparently containing the letters UCAI.
Filter photographs and enhancements done by STURP also show
UC and AI shapes, but somewhat askew (Weaver 1980:753).
Whanger (quoted in a United Press International report,
April 8, 1982) found exact agreement between the shape and
motif of a coin of Roman Palestine and the image over the
right eye, when superimposed in polarized light. There is,
however, no general agreement on the inscription or on the
identification of the protuberances as coins,

The "blood" areas were the subject of special attention from
STURP, employing analytical methods of much greater
sensitivity than those used by the Turin Commission. Even
during cursory inspection, however, it was discovered that,
contrary to the Commission's findings, the stains do
penetrate to the reverse side of the cloth. Color
photomicroscopy (Pellicori and Evans 1981:41) showed the
stains to consist of red-orange amorphous encrustations
caught in the fibrils and in the crevices. Unlike body image
areas, the "blood" regions exhibit the capillary and
meniscus characteristics of viscous liquids, viz.,
penetration, matting, and cementing of the fibers-a
phenomenon consistent with blood, paint, or other staining
agents. Ultraviolet fluorescence photographs (Gilbert and
Gilbert 1980) revealed a pale aura around the stains at the
wrist, side wound, and feet, with a fluorescence similar to
that of serum, X-ray fluorescence measurements (Morris,
Schwalbe, and London 1980) showed significant concentrations
of iron only in the blood areas. Both transmission and
reflection spectroscopy yielded an absorption pattern
characteristic of hemoglobin, and chemical conversion of the
suspected heme to a porphyrin was accomplished (Heller and
Adler 1980). Blood constituents other than heme derivatives
-protein, bilirubin, and albumin - were also identified
chemically (Heller and Adler 1981:87-91). A total of 12
tests confirming the presence of whole blood on the Shroud
are described by Heller and Adler (1981:92). Finally,
fluorescent antigen-antibody reactions (Bollone, Jorio, and
Massaro 1981) indicated that the blood is human blood.

The presence of traces of whole blood must be considered as
firmly established, with the probability that the blood is
human. It is possible, of course, that an artist or forger
worked with blood to touch up a body image obtained by other
means. Attempts to ascertain how the image came to be
imprinted on the cloth have not yielded definitive results.
An impressive array of optical and microscopic examinations
was conducted, including most of those used in testing for
blood constituents, infrared thermography and radiography,
micro-Raman analysis, and examination by ion microprobe and
electron scanning microscope (Jumper and Mottern 1980).
There was general agreement among researchers on the nature
of the image - degradation and/or dehydration of the
cellulose in superficial fibers resulting in a faint
reflection of light in the visible range (Pellicori 1980).
Only the topmost fibrils of each thread are dehydrated, even
in the darkest areas of the image, and no significant traces
of pigments, dyes, stains, chemicals, or organic or
inorganic substances were found in the image. It was thus
determined that the image was not painted, printed, or
otherwise artificially imposed on the cloth, nor was it the
result of any known reaction of the cloth to spices, oils,
or biochemicals produced by the body in life or death. STURP
concluded that "there are no chemical or physical methods .
. . and no combination of physical, chemical, biological or
medical circumstances which explain the image adequately"
(Joan Janney, quoted in an Associated Press report, October
11, 1981). Two theories currently contend among STURP
researchers: a "photolysis effect" (heat or radiation
scorch) and a "latent image process" where by the cloth was
sensitized by materials absorbed by direct contact with a
corpse. Wags were quick to label these "the first Polaroid
from Palestine" and "a Christ contact print."

Much publicity has been generated by the assertions of
McCrone (1980), a former STURP consultant, that the image is
a painting, judging from the microscopic identification of
traces of iron oxide and a protein (i.e., possible pigment
and binder) in image areas. The STURP analysis of the
Shroud's surface yielded much particulate matter of possible
artists' pigments such as alizarin, charcoal, and
ultramarine, as well as iron, calcium, strontium (possibly
from the soaking process for early linen), tiny bits of
wire, insect remains, wax droplets, a thread of lady's panty
hose, etc. (Wilson 1981). However, this matter was
distributed randomly or inconsistently over the cloth and
had no relationship to the image, which was found to be
substanceless, according to the combined results of
photomicroscopy, X-radiography, electron microscopy,
chemical analyses, and mass spectrometry. McCrone's claims
have been convincingly refuted in several STURP technical
reports (Pellicori and Evans 1980:42; Pellicori 1980:1918;
Heller and Adler 1981:91-94; Schwalbe and Rogers
1982:11-24). The results of previous work by the Italian
commission also run totally counter to those claims
(Filogamo and Zina 1976:35-37; Brandone and Borroni
1978:205-14; Frei 1982:5). Undaunted, McCrone (personal
communication, 1982) continues to stake his reputation on
the interpretation of the Shroud image as "an easel painting
. . . as a very dilute water color in a tempera medium."

More promising far future research was the identification by
micro-analyst Giovanni Riggi of a substance chemically
resembling natron, a powder used in ancient Egypt to
dehydrate the corpse prior to embalming. An accelerated
dehydration process producing a form of Volckringer (1942)
print similar to those left by plants pressed in paper is a
possibility now under investigation. While further research
may shed new light on the origins of the image, the
possibility must be recognized that the precise mechanism of
image formation may never be known. Scientific testing of
the Shroud has not, however, reached a dead end;
autoradiography of the entire cloth, thread-by-thread
microscopic search, a complete vacuuming of the cloth for
pollen and other particles, and of course C14 dating have
been suggested.

Proposals for radiocarbon dating of samples from the Shroud
are still under consideration by the Catholic church,
although approval has been given in principle. The result
eventually obtained will undoubtedly have an enormous and, I
would submit, unwarranted impact on the general view of the
Shroud's authenticity. A C14 age of 2,000 years would not
appreciably tilt the scales toward genuineness, as only the
cloth, not the image, would be so dated. A more recent date
of whatever magnitude would also fail to settle the matter
in view of the many possibilities of exchange and
contamination over the centuries (variations in ambient
atmosphere, boiling in oil and water, exposure to smoke and
fire, contact with other organic materials) and the still
unknown conditions of image formation, which affected the
very cellulose of the linen. The antiquity of the Shroud
can, however, be established from archaeological data now
available, employing criteria commonly accepted for the
dating of manuscripts, ceramics, and stone and metal
artifacts not subjected to radiometric measurements.

The fact that the exact manner of image formation is not and
may never be known does not pose a serious obstacle to
establishing the Shroud's authenticity. The absence of a
satisfactory explanation of the image formation does not, as
Mueller (1982:27) argues rather curiously, rule out natural
processes and leave only human artifice or the supernatural.
Rather, the information obtained from medical studies and
direct scientific testing establishes the framework for the
issue: the Shroud was used to enshroud a corpse, and the
image is the result of some form of interaction between body
and cloth and does not derive from the use of paint, powder,
acid, or other materials which could have been used to
create an image on cloth. Whatever process gave rise to the
image, the necessary conditions may have prevailed
accidentally during a forger's attempted use of a corpse to
stain the cloth at in an actual burial. It is virtually
unimaginable that a forger of any period would have known of
a secret "dry" method (as proposed by Nickell 1979) to
produce such an image, a method apparently used only once
and evasive of the most sophisticated modern means of
detection. The evidence certainly points very strongly
toward a natural though extremely unusual process, possibly
aided by substances placed with the body and linen at the
time of contact.

ANTHROPOLOGICAL, ARCHAEOLOGICAL, AND ART HISTORICAL
CONSIDERATIONS

There is evidence that the body once folded in the Shroud
was the victim of a Roman crucifixion. Though used as a
method of execution by the Persians, the Phoenicians, the
Greeks, and other societies of antiquity, crucifixion in the
Roman world was distinctive in a number of ways. Flogging
invariably preceded execution and was usually carried out as
the condemned proceeded to the crucifixion site; the victim
was made to carry his own crossbar and was tied or nailed
thereto and then hoisted onto a cross; or a T-shaped frame.
Evidence in the Shroud image attests to each of these
traits, except that the Shroud man was stationary with arms
above the head or outstretched during the flogging. Further,
both the whip marks and the side wound appear to have been
inflicted with Roman implements. Unlike the depictions of
medieval artists, the dumbbell shape of the scourge wounds
and their occurrence in groups of two or three match exactly
the plumbatae (pellets) affixed to each end of the
multithonged Roman flagrum (whip), a specimen of which was
excavated at Herculaneum. The side wound is an ellipse
corresponding exactly to excavated examples of the
leaf-shaped point of the lancea (lance) likely to have been
used by the militia: it does not match the typical points of
the hasta (spear), hasta veliaris (short spear), or pilum
(javelin) used by the infantry. The lance thrust to the side
of Christ was, according to Origen of the 4th century,
administered, following the Roman military custom, sub alas
(below the armpits), where the wound of the Shroud image is
located.

The wrist-nailing of the Shroud image is highly significant,
as it contradicts the entire tradition in Christian art from
the first crucifixion and crucifixion scenes of the early
6th century (hardly 200 years after crucifixion was
abolished) down to the 17th century, of placing the nails in
the palms (McNair 1978:35). The few portrayals thereafter
(Van Dyck, Rubens) of nailing in the wrist have been
considered influenced by the Shroud or chronological markers
for dating it. Similarly, the impaling of both feet with a
single nail occurs in art only in the 11th century and
after. Again, the Shroud is construed by some as the origin
of the trend, by others as influenced by it. The style of
nailing of wrist and feet was confirmed as Roman by a recent
archaeological discovery. The first human remains with
evidence of crucifixion were unearthed by bulldozers at
Giv'at ha-Mivtar, near Jerusalem, in 1968. Among the stone
ossuaries of 35 persons deceased ca. A.D. 50-70, one marked
with the name Johanan held the remains of a young adult male
whose heel bones were riveted by a single nail with traces
of wood adhering to it (Tzaferis 1970). At the wrist end of
the forearm, a scratch mark as if from a nail was identified
on the radial bone; parts of the scratch had been worn
smooth from "friction, grating and grinding between the
radial bone and the nail towards the end of the crucifixion"
(Haas 1970:58), a grim confirmation of the seesaw motion
deduced by Barbet to have characterized the final agonies of
the Shroud man.

In several important respects, however, the Shroud evidence
varies from the usual crucifixion and burial practices of
1st-century Palestine. Prior to crucifixion, a wide range of
tortures might be inflicted: gouging of the eyes,
mutilations, burning of the hair, etc. (Hengel 1977). The
choice of torments apparently depended on the inclinations
of the execution party and was bounded only by a concern to
avoid the premature death of the condemned. The "crown of
thorns" devised for Christ and the mocking and beatings
appear to derive from the judicially sanctioned subjection
of the condemned to the caprice of his guards. The Shroud
man, like Christ, was flogged in a stationary position
rather than on the way to the execution ground. In deference
to strong Jewish feeling against leaving a corpse exposed
after sunset, the Roman administration in Palestine allowed
the breaking of the legs (crurifragium) to hasten death.
John's Gospel (19:32) specifically records that the thieves
crucified with Christ had their legs broken in order that
the bodies could be taken down before nightfall. The right
tibia, left tibia, and fibula of the Johanan remains were
also broken, but the legs of the Shroud man were not. There
is no historical mention of any other method of hastening
death or coup de grace, and indeed crucifixion elsewhere in
the empire was mandated to be a slow and agonizing death,
usually lasting 24-36 hours. The lance thrust to the side of
Christ thus appears as a capricious and unique act by one of
the guards.

Again out of consideration for local custom, the Romans
allowed the bodies of crucified Jews to be buried in a
common pit instead of being left on the cross or thrown on a
heap for scavenging animals as was the general practice.
Certainly the use of a sheet of fine linen cloth such as the
Shroud would indicate a degree of wealth, respect, family
ties, or ranking not normally pertaining to common
criminals. In general burial practice, the body would have
been washed and anointed with oils, and the linen would not
have been removed from the body. In other respects, the
Shroud does accord with burial customs known or surmised of
1st-century Jews. The account by Maimonides, a 12th-century
Jewish scholar at Cordova, parallels what can be constructed
from the 4th-century Palestinian Talmud, 2d-century Mishna,
and biblical accounts: "After the eyes and mouth are closed,
the body is washed; it is then anointed with perfumes and
rolled up in a sheet of white linen, in which aromatic
spices are placed." The possible presence of a chin band and
coins over the eyes has been noted; the failure to wash the
body may be explained by the Sabbath prohibition or by the
existence of early injunctions, similar to those later
incorporated in the medieval codes of Rabbinical law,
against washing of the body or cutting of the hair, beard,
and fingernails of victims of capital punishment or violent
death (Lavoie et al. 1981). Finally, the burial posture of
the Shroud figure is seen in a number of skeletons excavated
at the ca. 200 B.C.-A.D. 70 cemetery of the Essene sect at
Qumran (Wilson 1955:60), which were laid flat, facing
upwards, elbows bent and hands crossed over the chest or
pelvis. Sox (1981:134), however, sees the position as a
reflection of medieval modesty.

The placing of coins or shards over the eyes of the corpse
was known among medieval Jews and believed to be an ancient
tradition (Bender 1895:101-3) to prevent the eyes from
opening before glimpsing the next world; in the pagan
tradition, coins were placed on the body as payment to
Charon for crossing the River Styx. Recent excavations
(Hachlili 1979:34) at Jewish tombs of the 1st century A.D.
near Jericho have yielded the first evidence of this
practice; two coins (A.D. 41-44) were found inside a skull,
undoubtedly having fallen through the eye sockets. On the
Shroud, the pattern over the right eye exactly matches the
size and shape of some of the cruder coins (leptons) of the
procuratorial series in Judea, especially those of Gratus
(A.D. 15-26) and Pilate (26-36). The UCAI "inscription" was
suggested to be a misspelling of the Greek TIBERIOU KAICAROC
("Tiberius Caesar," A.D. 14-37); in 1981 an unpublished coin
bearing the letters IOUCAI was discovered in a collection
(F. Filas, news release, September 1, 1981). Although the
letter-like shapes on the Shroud are not clear enough to be
distinguished with certainty from vagaries of the image and
the weave, their location in the correct position on the
coin shape when seen in relief would seem to give the
inscription a small measure of credibility. One cannot,
however, go very far with this evidence, for even if the
imprint could be confirmed as a Pilate coin, such coins were
circulating for at least several decades after minting and
were probably obtainable for a considerable time thereafter,
the coins of Pilate having gained a certain notoriety in
Judea for their use of pagan symbols (Kanael 1963).

Coon's description, noted above, of the Shroud face as
Semitic in appearance is supported by Stewart (cited in
Stevenson and Habermas 1081:35), who points out other
features of the image which suggest a Middle Eastern origin.
The beard, hair parted in the middle and falling to the
shoulders, and pigtail indicate that the man was not Greek
or Roman. The unbound pigtail has been described as
"perhaps the most strikingly Jewish feature" of the Shroud
(Wilson 1978:54) and has been shown to have been a very
common hairstyle for Jewish men in antiquity. The estimated
height of the Shroud man at around 175-180 cm corresponds
with the average height (178 cm) of adult male skeletons
excavated in the 1st-century cemetery near Jerusalem (Haas
1970) and with the ideal male height of 4 ells (176 cm)
according to an interpretation of the Talmud (Kraus
1910-11).

Some of the earliest representations of Christ from the 2d
to 4th centuries portray him as youthful, clean-shaven, and
Greco-Roman; others depict a bearded, Semitic face much more
akin to that of the Shroud. Beginning in the 6th century,
the face of Christ in Byzantine art became highly
conventionalized, with a certain resemblance to the Shroud
figure. Vignon (1939) noted 20 peculiarities in the Shroud
face (e.g., a transverse streak across the forehead, a V
shape at the bridge of the nose, a fork in the beard, etc.)
that are common in Byzantine iconography. He suggested that
the Shroud might have been the source of this artistic
tradition. Whanger and Whanger (n.d.), using a system of
polarized light to superimpose images, found 46 points of
congruence between details of the Shroud face and the face
of Christ in a 6th-century Mt. Sinai mosaic and 63 points of
agreement between the Shroud face and the face of Christ on
a 7th-century Byzantine coin. In other respects, however,
the Shroud image differs markedly from Byzantine art of the
early centuries in revealing a dead Christ, covered with
wounds and blood, nude, lacking any indication of majesty or
divinity. The crucifixes and crucifixion scenes of the 5th
to 8th centuries invariably show a nonsuffering, glorified
Christ, eyes open, clad in a tunic, with no bleeding or
signs of physical agony. Again, the evidence indicates very
strongly that the Shroud image does not derive from the art
of this or any era, but may be the source of certain
features.

In summary, the evidence from anthropology, archaeology, and
art history corroborates in a compelling manner that of
medical and scientific analyses. It should now be considered
well-established that the Shroud is indeed an archaeological
document of crucifixion - a conclusion reached by STURP and
most serious students of the Shroud since the 1930s.
Attempts to interpret it as a painting (McCrone), a
wood-block print (Curto 1976), a bas-relief rubbing (Nickell
1979), a scorch from a hot statue (Papini 1982), or a
colored "clay press" (Gabrielli 1976) are untenable, derive
from consideration of only a small portion of the evidence,
ignore the vast array of data to the contrary, and need not
be discussed further. The confirmation by archaeology of
numerous details found in the image and of hypotheses
deduced therefrom - nailing of the wrist, single nailing of
both feet together, seesaw motion on the cross, coins on the
eyes, burial posture, and Middle Eastern origin, even the
UCAI "misspelling" - give the Shroud an undeniable ring of
authenticity as an archaeological object.

The pollen, the Semitic appearance of the figure, and other
anthropological evidence combine to indicate an origin of
the Shroud in Palestine or possibly Asia Minor; the
pathological data coupled with the evidence of Roman
implements and style allow it to be assigned with confidence
to the period of Roman crucifixion, thus from the Roman
conquest of Turkey and Palestine in 133-66 B.C. to
Constantine's banning of this form of execution ca. A.D.
315. The "obvious" representation of Christ in the image
further narrows the dating of the Shroud to A.D. 30-315. On
this final point of identity we arrive at the "crux" of the
issue, for there were thousands of crucifixions during this
period in Palestine and Asia Minor.

FORGERY/ACCIDENT HYPOTHESES

The identification of the Shroud figure may be approached by
testing the uniqueness of the set of traits it shares with
the historical description of the death of Christ. That is,
the question may be posed whether these shared details can
be established to a reasonable degree as historically
specific, in the same manner that, for example, the singular
characteristics of the tomb of Tutankhamen or the
Shang-dynasty kings mentioned in oracle texts allow a
definite identification. Such an archaeological/historical
identification may be initiated by endeavoring to generate
alternative hypotheses, derived from the known historical
context, which might account for the configuration of
features characterizing the Shroud. Calculations of
cumulative probabilities (e.g., Donovan 1980; Stevenson and
Habermas 1981:124-29) based on mere historical guesswork
(legs not broken: 1 chance in 3; lance thrust to side: 1 in
27; etc.) are of no scientific validity whatever.

In order to be as definitive as possible, we shall examine a
wide range of scenarios - some little more credible in
ancient history than the notion that Hitler is alive in
Brazil is in the present. And yet, any conceivable scenario
which could be successfully superimposed on the Shroud's
particular pattern of data would have to be taken seriously.
In considering the Shroud as a possible forgery, an
unwarranted emphasis on intentionality creeps into the
discussion. Between deliberate hoax and true relic are
various shades of accident, mistaken identity, excessive
reverence for an inspirational "visual aid," and/or
exaggerated claims. The ultimately important question is, of
course, not how this image on cloth came to be taken as
Christ's, but how it acquired such an extraordinary accuracy
in the details of Christ's historically known life and
anthropologically known times.

Painting

The interpretation of the Shroud as a painting by an unknown
medieval artist emerged from its suspicious history as
highly likely and has persisted with unusual stubbornness
down to the present. Its prominence as the main forgery
theory is such that virtually all commentators expend great
effort in disproving it, believing the authenticity of the
relic to be established thereby. The notion has indeed been
disproved so thoroughly and absolutely that it should be
permanently buried. I shall simply list yet again the
numerous items of evidence, many of which would be
sufficient singly to establish that the image is not a
medieval painting, rubbing, scorch, or other work of art:
anatomical detail, realism of the wounds, presence of blood,
absence of pigment or binder, reversal of light and dark,
diffuseness of the image at close range, three-dimensional
information, absence of outline or shading, lack of
directionality in the colored areas, lack of change in color
from light to dark tones, color not affected by heat or
water, detail and twin radiation of scourge marks, nailing
of wrists, single nailing of both feet together,
characteristic wounds of the Roman flagrum and lancea,
Oriental cap rather than Western circlet crown, accuracy in
Semitic appearance and Jewish burial posture, pollen from
Turkey and Palestine, difficulty in reconciling the Shroud
with biblical accounts, nudity of the figure. Each of these
features could be explained by invoking extraordinary
circumstance, e.g., absence of pigment due to the use of a
thin solution and frequent washings of the relic, real blood
used by the artist, pathological exactitude from the
artist's genius, scourge marks and wrist nailing from
intuition, a cloth of Middle Eastern origin, etc. Clearly,
however, the cumulative effect is to place the painting
hypothesis somewhat lower in credibility than notions of the
Marlowe authorship of Shakespeare's plays or an Egyptian
influence on the Mayas.

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