@article{doi101126science2424877378, author = "Waldrop, M M", title = "Shroud of turin is medieval.", year = "1988", journal = "Science (New York, N.Y.)", url = "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17789808/", doi = "10.1126/science.242.4877.378", pmid = "17789808" } @article{waldrop1988shroud, author = "Waldrop, M. Mitchell", title = "Shroud of Turin Is Medieval", year = "1988", journal = "Science", url = "https://doi.org/10.1126/science.242.4877.378", doi = "10.1126/science.242.4877.378", number = "4877", pages = "378-378", volume = "242" } @misc{waldrop1988shroud1, author = "Waldrop, M. M", title = "Shroud of Turin is Medieval", year = "1988", howpublished = "Science, v. 242, p. 378", note = "talkorigins\_source = {true}; raw\_reference = {Waldrop, M. M., 1988, Shroud of Turin is Medieval: Science, v. 242, p. 378.}" } @article{pmid2646984, author = "Warner, M", title = "The Shroud of Turin.", year = "1989", journal = "Analytical chemistry", url = "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2646984/", pmid = "2646984" } @article{doi101038srep14484, author = "Barcaccia, Gianni and Galla, Giulio and Achilli, Alessandro and Olivieri, Anna and Torroni, Antonio", title = "Uncovering the sources of DNA found on the Turin Shroud.", year = "2015", journal = "Scientific reports", abstract = "The Turin Shroud is traditionally considered to be the burial cloth in which the body of Jesus Christ was wrapped after his death approximately 2000 years ago. Here, we report the main findings from the analysis of genomic DNA extracted from dust particles vacuumed from parts of the body image and the lateral edge used for radiocarbon dating. Several plant taxa native to the Mediterranean area were identified as well as species with a primary center of origin in Asia, the Middle East or the Americas but introduced in a historical interval later than the Medieval period. Regarding human mitogenome lineages, our analyses detected sequences from multiple subjects of different ethnic origins, which clustered into a number of Western Eurasian haplogroups, including some known to be typical of Western Europe, the Near East, the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian sub-continent. Such diversity does not exclude a Medieval origin in Europe but it would be also compatible with the historic path followed by the Turin Shroud during its presumed journey from the Near East. Furthermore, the results raise the possibility of an Indian manufacture of the linen cloth.", url = "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4593049/", doi = "10.1038/srep14484", pmcid = "PMC4593049", pmid = "26434580" } @article{doi101007s1173901614337, author = "Di Minno, Giovanni and Scala, Rosanna and Ventre, Itala and de Gaetano, Giovanni", title = "Blood stains of the Turin Shroud 2015: beyond personal hopes and limitations of techniques.", year = "2016", journal = "Internal and emergency medicine", abstract = "In the early '80s, evidence was provided that, rather than a dye (red okra), hemoglobin was indeed responsible for the alleged blood stains of the Turin Shroud. Such stains were shown to belong to an MNS positive individual of the AB group, and the halos surrounding the blood stains were compatible with serum containing trace amounts of bilirubin, albumin and immunoglobulins. However, being only based on indirect and circumstantial evidence, most of these data were challenged. In the late '90s, together with the evidence of the gene coding β-globin, contamination between male and female DNA was documented on the Turin Shroud. Although the presence of male was more noticeable than female DNA, these data were considered null and void. These days, to establish that blood indisputably belongs to an MNS positive individual of the AB group, and to exclude DNA contamination, high-specificity techniques with monoclonal antibodies and molecular studies on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA are needed. Indeed, consistent with DNA contamination on the Turin Shroud, sequences from multiple subjects of different ethnic origins have been recently detected on the human mitochondrial genome extracted from dust particles of the linen. Innovative concepts are likely to come up using modern research approaches to evaluate the issue of blood stains of the Turin Shroud. Nor can we rule out the possibility that religious implications of the new findings on the Turin Shroud might be envisaged. Conceivably enough, the ongoing debate will be fierce and passionate, especially in the media.", url = "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27001889/", doi = "10.1007/s11739-016-1433-7", pmid = "27001889" } @article{smith2017on, author = "Smith, John", title = "On the Mathematical Principles of Supernatural Philosophy", year = "2017", publisher = "figshare", abstract = "There is a unique and mysterious negative image of a naked crucified man on the Shroud of Turin that has proven impossible to duplicate. Skeptics say that it is a medieval forgery because the cloth was radiocarbon dated in 1988 to between 1260 and 1390 AD, but this is easily explicable, and all of the forensic and historical evidence other than this indicates that the 1988 result is wrong. The body-image -the result of oxidization and dehydration of the top-most micro-fibers of the cloth- is consistent with having been produced by a burst of high-frequency by radiation, and Dr John Jackson has proposed that the body image on the Shroud was produced by the effect of radiation on a cloth collapsing through a disappearing body. But there is something insufficient about the cloth-collapse theory. In particular, it cannot account for the undistorted nature of the image. An alternative explanation - first proposed as far as I know by the late ecclesiastical artist Isabel Piczek - is that there was a suspension of gravity at the moment of resurrection. Here we consider mathematical principles that a) stand in their own right b) explain the image on the Shroud and the skewed radiocarbon date and c) recommend Piczeg's explanation.", url = "https://figshare.com/articles/journal\_contribution/On\_the\_Mathematical\_Principles\_of\_Supernatural\_Philosophy/5596900", doi = "10.6084/m9.figshare.5596900" } @article{fernándezsánchez2024why, author = "Fernández-Sánchez, José L.", title = "Why the Shroud of Turin is not a Medieval Work?", year = "2024", journal = "Scientia et Fides", abstract = "The Shroud of Turin is an old linen fabric imprinted with the image of a tortured man who lies prone with his hands crossed before him. Since for many it is related to Jesus of Nazareth, this cloth is among the most studied, controversial and enigmatic of all archaeological and religious objects. Since its radiocarbon dating at the end of the eighties of the last century, it is considered by many to be an object made in the Middle Ages. The controversy is due to the fact that there are other scientific and artistic evidences that place this object outside the medieval sphere. An argument map is a critical thinking way of representing the relationships between evidences and arguments, and is used here to represent the sequences of argumentation that defend that the Shroud of Turin is not a medieval object.", url = "https://doi.org/10.12775/setf.2024.019", doi = "10.12775/setf.2024.019", number = "2", pages = "123-150", volume = "12" } @misc{hong2025the, author = "Hong, Seokhoun", title = "The Shroud of Turin Is Not That of Jesus — An Analysis of Theological and Structural Inconsistencies in the Resurrection Narrative", year = "2025", publisher = "OSF Registries", abstract = "This paper critically examines the claim that the Shroud of Turin is the burial cloth of Jesus, arguing instead that it is a product of medieval religious imagination and theological contradiction. The critique is structured around five key arguments: Theological Inconsistency with the Resurrection: The resurrection of Jesus is fundamentally a transcendent, non-physical event. A physical remnant such as a burial cloth contradicts the scriptural message of a vanished body and spiritual transformation. Silence of Scripture and Early Church Tradition: The canonical Gospels make only passing reference to burial linens, and there is a complete absence of any verifiable continuity between the Shroud and early Christian communities or Church Fathers. Problems with Image Formation: The image on the Shroud appears not as a natural imprint caused by bodily fluids or pressure but rather as a radiographic or photonic silhouette—suggesting mythologization or possible fabrication. Radiocarbon Dating and Material Evidence: Radiocarbon tests conducted in 1988 place the Shroud’s origin in the 13th–14th centuries, over 1200 years after the death of Jesus, contradicting its authenticity as a first-century artifact. The Psychological Drive Toward Tangible Faith Objects: The human tendency to materialize sacred history (as seen with relics such as the Holy Grail, the Spear of Longinus, and the Shroud) reflects collective psychological needs rather than historical fact. 📌 Conclusion The Shroud of Turin is not a relic of Jesus but a symbolic construct born from a theological need to visualize faith. It reflects a medieval attempt to substantiate the resurrection through material evidence—ironically undermining the very spiritual nature of the event. The true legacy of the resurrection lies not in fabric, but in the transformative history of the early Christian community.", url = "https://osf.io/p8xur/", doi = "10.17605/osf.io/p8xur" } @misc{neyer2025a, author = "Neyer, Matthew", title = "A Medieval European Origin for the Shroud of Turin Is Thermodynamically Impossible", year = "2025", publisher = "Zenodo", abstract = {The authenticity of the Shroud of Turin has been contested primarily by the 1988 radiocarbon dating (1260–1390 AD), despite conflicting chemical and mechanical evidence suggesting an ancient origin. This paper introduces a Computational Falsification methodology to test the "Medieval Hypothesis" against the immutable laws of Thermodynamics and Chemical Kinetics. I performed three independent "In Silico" stress tests: Paleoclimatic Thermodynamics: Modeling cellulose degradation under the specific temperatures of the European "Little Ice Age." Hydrolysis Kinetics: Integrating historical cathedral humidity levels. Dual-Clock Cross-Calibration: Forcing independent Vanillin and Crystallinity clocks to share a single environmental history. Crucially, my thermodynamic model is empirically validated by control tests on certified medieval linens (c. 1350 AD) [De Caro et al., 2022]. These controls exhibited a WAXS aging factor of \textasciitilde 0.12, consistent with my simulation predictions (5–9\%) and contrasting sharply with the Shroud’s advanced decay (0.60). Results: The Medieval Hypothesis fails all thermodynamic and kinetic tests, predicting a cloth that is chemically "too fresh" by a margin of \textasciitilde 94\%. The specific storage conditions of Medieval Europe (Cold/Dry) acted as a preservative, rendering the observed degradation mathematically impossible within a 700-year timeframe. These findings overwhelmingly support a 1st-Century Levantine origin for the main body of the cloth.  }, url = "https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.17665669", doi = "10.5281/zenodo.17665669" } @misc{moussa2026a, author = "Moussa, Rony", title = "A Lost Proto-Photographic Technique and Cognitive Bias: A Unified Hypothesis for the Formation and Interpretation of the Shroud of Turin", year = "2026", publisher = "Zenodo", abstract = "This paper proposes a unified hypothesis for the formation and enduring interpretation of the Shroud of Turin, combining a technical reconstruction with a cognitive-sociocultural analysis. On the technical side, the study suggests that the image may have been produced through a proto-photographic optical-chemical process feasible within medieval constraints. The model integrates three elements: optical projection (camera obscura–like), a chemically sensitized linen substrate, and exposure to natural light. This framework aims to account for key observed properties of the Shroud image, including its negative-like appearance, superficial fiber coloration, and apparent three-dimensional encoding. On the interpretive side, the paper argues that the historical persistence of the Shroud’s mystery cannot be explained by technical factors alone. It introduces a cognitive bias framework in which medieval and later observers prioritized symbolic and religious meaning over mechanistic explanation. This interpretive shift, reinforced over time, contributed to the loss of attribution and the framing of the artifact as anomalous or miraculous. The proposed model does not claim definitive reconstruction but offers a testable and falsifiable framework. It situates the Shroud of Turin at the intersection of early experimental technique, material processes, and human interpretive bias.", url = "https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.19629187", doi = "10.5281/zenodo.19629187" }