Shroud of Turin's age revisited: Study suggests 2,000-year-old origin

The Shroud of Turin has ignited emotions for decades. Since its discovery, numerous scientists have scrutinised its authenticity. Italian researchers now claim to have found evidence suggesting it is a burial cloth dating back to the time of Jesus Christ.

The Shroud of Turin is arguably one of the most studied archaeological artefacts in the world. As "Independent" reminds us, attempts to determine its authenticity have been ongoing since the mid-14th century when it was found. In 1389, the Bishop of Troyes, Pierre d’Arcis, wrote a treatise arguing that the shroud was fake. However, this did not dampen subsequent researchers' enthusiasm to verify the cloth's authenticity.

In the 1980s, studies dated the shroud to 1260–1390 CE. Researchers then announced that the cloth was a medieval fake. However, these studies met with considerable controversy, leading to further attempts to estimate the actual age of the cloth and determine if it could have originated from the time of Christ.

The latest research results were published in the journal Heritage. They indicated that while it is impossible to definitively state whether the shroud was indeed Jesus’ burial cloth, it was assessed to have been created around 2000 years ago.

The experimental results are consistent with the hypothesis that the Shroud of Turin is a 2000-year-old relic - claim the Italian scientists, who suggest that previous studies were flawed due to contamination.

Scientists claim that the cellulose contained in the shroud’s fibres ages more slowly from the 14th century onwards, which is believed to be related to the lower temperatures in the storage location. This led scientists to conclude that most of the natural ageing of the fabric (about 90 percent) occurred before the 14th century.

However, there is a catch. Scientists state that the shroud can only be definitively considered to be 20 centuries old if further evidence indicates that the relic was safely stored at an average temperature of around 22°C and relative humidity of about 55 percent for 13 centuries before its discovery.

They emphasise that to confirm their findings and conclusions, a more systematic X-ray analysis will be necessary, "of a greater number of samples taken from the Shroud of Turin fabric."

The challenge for scientists is to verify whether the conditions described in the new study correspond to possible locations around the world and historical periods in which the shroud could have been stored before it was discovered and its documented history began.