The Challenge of the Shroud: History, Science and the Shroud of Turin

by Mark Oxley

The book addresses the many challenges posed by the Shroud. If, for example, it really was the work of a 14th century forger, how did such a person, with the limited scientific knowledge of his time, produce an artifact that can still not be replicated or even explained by 21st century sceince? If the Shroud is evidence of an event that could be called supernatural - the resurrection of a dead man - what does this imply for scientists studying it|? If the Shroud is evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, what are the implications of this for those who do not believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God or that he was anything but a rural Jewish teacher? What are the challenges facing researchers and theologians today both in preserving the Shroud and in carrying out further scientific research? The book is in three main parts - a complete review of the history of the Shroud - both known and speculated; a study of crucifixion as a method of execution and its relationship to the image and markings on the Shroud; and a review of the scientific studies carried out on the Shroud over the past century, together with the various hypotheses that have been advanced as to how the image was formed. The book concludes with some suggestions as to how conflicting demands for preservation of the Shroud and for further scientific studies can be reconciled and carried forward. Is the Shroud the genuine burial cloth of Jesus Christ? This question is left to the reader to answer.

348 pages, Paperback

First published April 6, 2010

Reviews

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic, if exhaustive, book on the Shroud. The beginning lost me in names and geography, but I would read it all again for the biological explanation of crucifixion. I think it was very objective; both sides of the arguments were given for a myriad of questions.

[Aline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the books on The Shroud of Turin set out with a very clear purpose in mind - to prove a particular view of it; as a clever fake, the burial cloth of Christ, the burial cloth of someone else, an extended joke by Da Vinci etc. This book sets out to articulate the history of the Shroud, information about the details of crucifixion, scientific studies of the Shroud, and competing claims to both its history and explanations of the images.

It's a reasonably informative book, appears relatively balanced (though the author asserts early his belief that the Shroud *is* the burial cloth of Christ) and a good general overview for anyone interested in the Shroud and wanting to know more than the usual hype (religious and scientific).

It hasn't changed my opinion on the Shroud as to whether it is 'real' or not, however it is a good introduction and however the image was created (and of whomever) it remains a compelling one.