Original subtitles

Narrator: PRESERVED IN ITALY'S TURIN CATHEDRAL

IS ONE OF CHRISTIANITY'S MOST FAMOUS HOLY RELICS.

THE TURIN SHROUD IS SAID TO BE THE BURIAL CLOTH

IN WHICH JESUS WAS WRAPPED AFTER HIS CRUCIFIXION

OVER 2,000 YEARS AGO.

THE SHROUD COMPLETELY INSPIRES THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN IT

BECAUSE WE HAVE TO REMEMBER,

JESUS LEFT NO PHYSICAL TRACE OF HIMSELF ON EARTH.

HE WROTE NOTHING.

THERE'S NO ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE, ACTUALLY,

THAT HE EXISTED, BUT IF THE SHROUD IS REAL,

THEN THIS IS TANGIBLE PROOF THAT HE DID.

THE TURIN SHROUD MIGHT BE THE SILVER BULLET

THAT PROVES BEYOND A SHADOW OF DOUBT

THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS CHRIST.

Narrator: INCREDIBLY, IT SEEMS JESUS'S IMAGE

WAS SOMEHOW IMPRINTED ON THE TURIN SHROUD WHEN HE WAS BURIED.

ALTHOUGH THE IMAGE IS VERY FAINT,

A NEGATIVE IS MUCH CLEARER.

COULD THIS REALLY BE THE FACE OF JESUS

AFTER HIS DEATH CROWNED WITH THORNS?

MILLIONS OF CHRISTIAN FAITHFUL BELIEVE SO,

AS DO SOME SCIENTISTS.

I THINK WE CAN BE CERTAIN THAT THIS IS

THE BURIAL WRAPPING JESUS.

Narrator: SKEPTICS DISAGREE.

UNFORTUNATELY, IT'S A PRETTY OBVIOUS FAKE

FROM THE MIDDLE AGES.

Narrator: WHAT IS THE TRUTH?

IS THE TURIN SHROUD GENUINE,

OR CAN OTHER AMAZING EXPLANATIONS

SOLVE THE PUZZLE OF ITS MYSTERIOUS PROPERTIES?

IT'S NOT THE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS CHRIST.

IT'S THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH CREATED

BY THE WORLD'S GREATEST GENIUS, LEONARDO DA VINCI.

♪

♪

♪

-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

Narrator: TURIN CATHEDRAL IS HOME TO ONE OF

THE MOST FAMOUS CHRISTIAN RELICS ON THE PLANET --

THE TURIN SHROUD.

THE TURIN SHROUD IS SO ICONIC 'CAUSE IT REPRESENTS

WHAT MIGHT BE THE ONLY PHYSICAL, TANGIBLE PROOF OF JESUS CHRIST.

Selwood: THE SHROUD GIVES A FACE TO A MAN

WHOSE LEGACY HAS DOMINATED SO MUCH OF HUMAN HISTORY.

HIS PHYSICAL ANATOMY IS VISIBLE ON THIS SHROUD,

AND THAT'S INCREDIBLY POWERFUL FOR MANY PEOPLE.

Narrator: BUT IS THE TURIN SHROUD REALLY THE GENUINE

BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS?

TODAY, THE TURIN SHROUD IS DISPLAYED TO THE PUBLIC

ONLY ON RARE OCCASIONS,

BUT A MODERN COPY IS ON PERMANENT DISPLAY

IN THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SHROUD NEAR TURIN CATHEDRAL.

♪

BRUNO BARBERIS IS THE SCIENTIFIC COORDINATOR

OF TURIN'S INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR STUDY OF THE SHROUD.

WE CAN SEE THE MOST IMPORTANT THING -- THE DOUBLE HUMAN IMAGE.

HERE WE CAN SEE THE FACE, THE CHEST,

THE HANDS, AND THE LEGS.

THE BLOOD IMAGE ARE CLEARLY DISTINGUISHABLE

DUE TO THE FACT THAT THEY ARE MORE RED.

IN MY OPINION, THE PROBABILITY THAT IT'S NOT A FAKE

BUT IS REALLY THE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS OF NAZARETH

IS VERY, VERY HIGH.

♪

Narrator: SKEPTICS, HOWEVER,

ARE CONVINCED THAT THE TURIN SHROUD

IS NOT JESUS'S GENUINE BURIAL CLOTH,

PARTLY BECAUSE THE FIRST SOLID HISTORICAL EVIDENCE

OF THE SHROUD'S EXISTENCE

ISN'T UNTIL IT APPEARED IN FRANCE IN THE 1350s,

NEARLY 1,400 YEARS AFTER JESUS'S DEATH.

Nickell: THE SHROUD SHOWS UP

UNDER VERY SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES

IN THE HANDS OF A SOLDIER OF FORTUNE NAMED

GEOFFROI DE CHARNY, AND HE NEVER WAS ABLE TO SAY

QUITE PRECISELY HOW HE, A MAN OF MODEST MEANS,

HAD ACQUIRED THE MOST HOLY RELIC IN CHRISTIANITY.

Narrator: ADDING TO DOUBTS ABOUT THE SHROUD'S AUTHENTICITY,

A FRENCH CLERIC OF THE TIME DENOUNCED IT AS A FORGERY.

WHEN THE SHROUD WAS FIRST EXHIBITED IN THE 1350s,

THE LOCAL BISHOP COMPLAINED AND SAID THAT THIS WAS A BAD THING,

THIS WAS MISLEADING PEOPLE,

AND HE SAID HE EVEN MET THE PAINTER WHO HAD PAINTED IT.

Narrator: DESPITE THIS, THE LEGEND OF THE SHROUD

AS THE TRUE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS

CONTINUED TO GROW OVER THE CENTURIES.

A FIRE DAMAGED IT IN 1532,

CAUSING BURN MARKS AND WATER STAINS.

BUT NUNS QUICKLY PATCHED IT UP.

AND IN 1578, IT WAS MOVED FROM FRANCE TO TURIN,

WHERE IT'S BEEN TREASURED EVER SINCE.

YET GIVEN THE SHROUDS CRYPTIC ORIGINS,

TODAY, THE VATICAN IS OFFICIALLY CAUTIOUS

ABOUT WHETHER THE SHROUD IS GENUINE OR NOT.

THE CHURCH DOESN'T ACTUALLY SAY ITSELF

THAT THIS IS A LITERAL IMAGE OF CHRIST.

THEY REFER TO IT NOT AS A RELIC, BUT AS AN ICON,

THAT IT'S A REPRESENTATION OF JESUS,

SO IF YOU WANT, THE CHURCH ITSELF

SEEMS TO BE KEEPING ITS OPTIONS OPEN.

Narrator: TRUE BELIEVERS AND SKEPTICS ALIKE WANT TO RESOLVE

THE DEBATE ABOUT THE SHROUD ONCE AND FOR ALL.

FOR OVER 40 YEARS, BOTH SIDES HAVE TURNED TO SCIENCE

TO PROVIDE THE DEFINITIVE ANSWER.

THE FIRST LARGE-SCALE SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION OF THE SHROUD

WAS CARRIED OUT IN THE LATE 1970s

BY THE SHROUD OF TURIN RESEARCH PROJECT.

BARRIE SCHWORTZ WAS A PHOTOGRAPHIC EXPERT

ON THE PRIMARILY AMERICAN TEAM.

WE DID A MYRIAD OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF PHOTOGRAPHY,

BUT WE ALSO DID SPECTRAL ANALYSES,

X-RAY AND X-RAY FLUORESCENCE, AND REFLECTANCE ANALYSIS.

SO WE HAD ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT PIECES OF EQUIPMENT.

AT THAT MOMENT IN TIME, THEY WERE STATE-OF-THE-ART.

AND IRONICALLY, THE SINGLE QUESTION WE WENT TO ANSWER,

HOW WAS THE IMAGE FORMED, WE WERE UNABLE TO ANSWER.

WE KNEW OF NO MECHANISM THAT COULD MAKE AN IMAGE

WITH THE CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS THAT WE FOUND ON THE SHROUD.

AND BECAUSE OF THAT, I CAME TO ACCEPT THAT THIS WAS

MOST LIKELY THE BURIAL SHROUD OF THE HISTORIC JESUS.

Narrator: SINCE SCHWORTZ'S TEAM EXAMINED THE TURIN SHROUD

IN THE LATE 1970s,

MANY OTHERS HAVE DONE SCIENTIFIC STUDIES OF THEIR OWN.

SOME HAVE AGREED THAT IT'S LIKELY TO BE AUTHENTIC,

BUT MANY OTHERS HAVE DECLARED THE SHROUD

TO BE A MEDIEVAL FAKE.

Selwood: SO NOW WE HAVE ALL THESE SCIENTIFIC PROOFS

THAT THE SHROUD IS REAL

ALONG WITH THE SCIENTIFIC PROOFS THAT IT ISN'T.

THE DEBATE RAGES, BUT THIS IS ONE OF

THE MOST CENTRAL ARTIFACTS IN CHRISTIANITY IF IT'S REAL.

♪

Narrator: ONE OF THE MOST RECENT SCIENTIFIC STUDIES,

PUBLISHED IN 2018

BY FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST DR. MATTEO BORRINI,

EMPLOYED BLOODSTAIN-PATTERN ANALYSIS,

A TECHNIQUE OFTEN USED IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS.

MORNING, PEOPLE.

SO, READY TO START WITH EXPERIMENT?

YEAH? VERY GOOD.

IN THE FIRST PART OF HIS RECREATED EXPERIMENT,

DR. BORRINI IS COMPARING THE BLOOD PATTERN

ON THE TURIN SHROUD TO HOW JESUS WOULD HAVE BLED

IF HE WAS CRUCIFIED ON A TRADITIONALLY SHAPED CROSS.

SO, NOW YOUR ARM IS EXTENDED

LIKE THE CLASSICAL CRUCIFIXION POSITION,

SO WITH THE ARM COMPLETELY HORIZONTAL.

SO, NOW -- EXACTLY.

WE SEE HERE THE BLEEDING WITH THE ARM COMPLETELY EXTENDED.

SO WHAT WE SEE IS THAT THERE IS JUST BLEEDING

THAT IS GOING DOWN, FOLLOWING THE LAW OF GRAVITY,

GOING DOWN 90 DEGREES.

HOWEVER, WHAT WE SEE IN THE TURN SHROUD IS NOT THIS.

Narrator: INSTEAD, THE BLOOD FROM JESUS'S WRISTS,

AS SEEN ON THE TURIN SHROUD,

DIDN'T DRIP AT A 90-DEGREE ANGLE TO HIS ARMS,

BUT DRIPPED ALONG THE LENGTH OF HIS ARMS.

BUT THIS DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN THE TURIN SHROUD IS A FAKE.

WE HAVE A VERY PARTICULAR IMAGE OF CHRIST ON THE CROSS.

AND THAT'S BECAUSE OF CENTURIES OF MEDIEVAL AND RENAISSANCE ART

THAT HAVE FIXED THIS VISION IN OUR MIND.

BUT ACTUALLY, ROMAN CRUCIFIXIONS EQUALLY TOOK PLACE

ON X-SHAPED CROSSES, T-SHAPED CROSSES,

OR SIMPLY EVEN NAILING THE VICTIM TO A TREE

THAT WAS STILL LIVING, SO CHRIST'S CRUCIFIXION

ACTUALLY COULD HAVE TAKEN ANY ONE OF THESE FORMS.

Narrator: AS A RESULT OF THIS,

DR. BORRINI REPEATS THE EXPERIMENT IN CASE JESUS WAS

CRUCIFIED WITH HIS HANDS NAILED HIGH ABOVE HIS HEAD.

♪

YES. HERE YOU SEE --

I WILL HOLD YOUR ARM SO YOU WILL NOT FEEL THE PAIN

OF A PROPER CRUCIFIED PERSON.

AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, THE BLOOD IS COMING DOWN QUITE VERTICALLY.

NOW, THIS IS THE DIRECTION

THAT WE HAVE IN THE TURIN SHROUD.

SCIENTIFIC TESTING COULD SUPPORT

THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE TURIN SHROUD

IF JESUS'S HANDS WERE NAILED HIGH ABOVE HIS HEAD.

BUT WHAT ABOUT EVIDENCE SUGGESTING THE SHROUD

IS A MEDIEVAL FORGERY?

AND IF IT IS A FAKE, WHO WOULD HAVE HAD THE MOTIVE AND SKILL

TO CREATE SOMETHING SO CONVINCING

THAT IT'S FOOLED MILLIONS OF PEOPLE FOR CENTURIES?

♪

♪

Narrator: THE TURIN SHROUD

MAY BE CHRISTIANITY'S MOST FAMOUS HOLY RELIC.

BUT IS IT THE GENUINE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS,

OR IS IT A REMARKABLE FAKE

THAT CONTINUES TO FOOL MILLIONS OF PEOPLE AFTER CENTURIES?

FOR OVER 40 YEARS,

SCIENTISTS HAVE SEARCHED FOR THE DEFINITIVE ANSWER.

THE SINGLE BEST SCIENTIFIC DATA POINT WE HAVE ON THE SHROUD

IS CARBON DATING THAT WAS DONE IN 1988.

IT WAS DONE IMMENSELY SCIENTIFICALLY AND INDEPENDENTLY

AND OVERSEEN BY THE BRITISH MUSEUM.

STRIPS OF THE CLOTH WERE SENT TO OXFORD,

TO ARIZONA, AND TO ZURICH,

AND THEY ALL TESTED INDEPENDENTLY OF EACH OTHER.

AND THE RESULTS THAT CAME BACK WITH A 95% CERTAINTY

WERE THAT THE LINEN DATED FROM BETWEEN 1260 AND 1390.

Narrator: SO IF THE CARBON DATING WAS ACCURATE,

THE TURIN SHROUD IS A MEDIEVAL FAKE

DATING TO THE 13th OR 14th CENTURIES.

HOWEVER, BELIEVERS IN THE SHROUD

HAVE SUGGESTED THE STUDY WAS FLAWED,

EVEN THOUGH MOST EXPERTS ACCEPT THE DATING RESULTS.

ONE SHROUD RESEARCHER IN PARTICULAR, LYNN PICKNETT,

BELIEVES IT'S A MEDIEVAL FORGERY AND CLAIMS TO HAVE IDENTIFIED

THE PERSON WHO FAKED IT SO CONVINCINGLY.

VERY FEW PEOPLE WOULD HAVE HAD THE MOTIVE AND TALENT

BESIDES ONE OF THE GREATEST ARTISTS,

SCIENTISTS, AND INVENTORS OF ALL TIME --

LEONARDO DA VINCI.

WE CAN'T BE CERTAIN WHO COMMISSIONED LEONARDO

TO FAKE THE SHROUD,

BUT ALMOST CERTAINLY, IT WAS SOMEONE IN THE VATICAN,

PERHAPS EVEN THE POPE,

BECAUSE IN THOSE DAYS, THEY WERE VERY CORRUPT.

AND BASICALLY, THEY WANTED THE ULTIMATE CHRISTIAN RELIC

THAT WOULD PULL IN THE PUNTERS AND LINE THEIR POCKETS.

FROM THE LATE MEDIEVAL AGES,

THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT COMMERCIAL VALUE

IN HAVING HOLY RELICS BECAUSE YOU WOULD DRAW PILGRIMS

NOT ONLY TO YOUR CHURCH BUT TO YOUR CITY,

AND THAT WAS A SIGNIFICANT SOURCE OF INCOME.

WE KNOW LEONARDO WAS GIVEN A ROOM IN THE VATICAN,

A SECRET ROOM.

WE DON'T KNOW MUCH ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN THERE,

BUT WHATEVER IT WAS, IT INVOLVED A MACHINE MADE OF MIRRORS.

AND IT IS SAID THAT WHATEVER WENT ON IN THAT ROOM,

THE GERMAN MIRROR MAKERS THAT WERE EMPLOYED RAN OUT SCREAMING

THAT IT WAS SORCERY.

AND IT SEEMED TO INVOLVE HUGE FLASHES OF LIGHT.

Narrator: LYNN BELIEVES THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI

HAD THE EQUIPMENT AND SKILLS, EVEN IN THE 15th CENTURY,

TO EXPERIMENT WITH PHOTOGRAPHY.

SHE CLAIMS THE TURIN SHROUD IS ACTUALLY

THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH.

Gough: I PERSONALLY HAVE NO DOUBT

THAT LEONARDO HAD THE TECHNOLOGICAL KNOW-HOW

AND MEANS TO FAKE THE TURN SHROUD.

LEONARDO INVENTED SO MANY INNOVATIVE THINGS

THAT HAVE ONLY COME TO MASS PRODUCTION -- HELICOPTERS,

FLYING MACHINES, ALL SORTS OF TECHNOLOGICAL DEVICES

THAT WERE HUNDREDS OF YEARS AHEAD OF THEIR TIME.

AND HE WAS WORKING WITH CAMERA TECHNOLOGY.

HE BUILT A CAMERA OBSCURA,

WHICH HE CALLED ARTIFICIAL EYE, WITH A LITTLE HOLE IN ONE WALL,

AND YOU PROJECTED IMAGES THROUGH IT ONTO THE INNER WALL.

WHAT YOU HAD TO DO IS YOU PUT A CLOTH IN THE CAMERA OBSCURA,

COAT IT WITH LIGHT-SENSITIVE CHEMICALS --

CHEMICALS THAT WERE READILY AVAILABLE IN LEONARDO'S DAY,

FOR EXAMPLE, EGG WHITE AND URINE,

AND BASICALLY, THE LIGHT HITS IT,

AND THE IMAGE FORMS.

Narrator: BUT DEVELOPING A PHOTOGRAPH USING

A CAMERA OBSCURA CAN TAKE SEVERAL DAYS.

SO IT'S VERY UNLIKELY LEONARDO DA VINCI

GOT SOMEONE TO STAND STILL FOR SO LONG IN FRONT OF THE PINHOLE.

INSTEAD, LYNN BELIEVES

THAT LEONARDO USED THE BODY OF A CORPSE

AND THE CAST OF A JESUS-LIKE FACE

TO CREATE HIS PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGE OF JESUS ON THE SHROUD.

THE IDEA THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI COULD HAVE EFFECTIVELY CREATED

A RENAISSANCE-ERA PHOTOGRAPH OF JESUS

ISN'T QUITE AS OUTLANDISH AS IT MAY SEEM

BECAUSE FOR ONE THING, THE IDEA OF THE CAMERA OBSCURA

WAS KNOWN 500 YEARS BEFORE LEONARDO.

AND WE KNOW FROM HIS DRAWING OF THE VITRUVIAN MAN

THAT HE WAS FASCINATED

BY THE WAY THAT HUMAN BODIES MOVE AND SO ON.

SO IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN THAT THE TURIN SHROUD

WAS ONE OF LEONARDO'S MORE BIZARRE EXPERIMENTS.

LEONARDO HAD NO COMPUNCTION ABOUT DOING TERRIBLE THINGS

TO CORPSES IN HIS ANATOMICAL RESEARCHES.

HE WOULD HAVE EXPERIMENTED UNTIL HE GOT IT RIGHT.

HE WOULD HAVE CRUCIFIED A CORPSE.

Narrator: THEN LYNN BELIEVES LEONARDO DA VINCI

ILLUMINATED HIS CAST OF A JESUS-LIKE FACE

AND THE CRUCIFIED CORPSE,

PROJECTING THEIR IMAGES THROUGH A CRYSTAL LENS

ONTO THE LIGHT-SENSITIVE CLOTH IN THE CAMERA OBSCURA.

AFTER A COUPLE OF DAYS, YOU TAKE THE CLOTH OUT

AND YOU WASH IT IN COLD WATER.

AND YOU'RE LEFT WITH THE LIGHT BITS.

THE DARK BITS JUST WASH AWAY.

SO YOU'VE GOT A NEGATIVE IMAGE, ESSENTIALLY,

AND THERE YOU HAVE IT, THE SHROUD OF JESUS.

AND THEN YOU PAINT BLOOD ON AND YOU'VE GOT IT.

AND THE PILGRIMS COME IN, AND THEY GO, "WOW."

Narrator: IT'S AN EXTRAORDINARY IDEA.

CAN IT REALLY BE SUBSTANTIATED

THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI CRUCIFIED A CORPSE IN ORDER

TO CREATE CHRISTIANITY'S BEST-KNOWN HOLY RELIC?

LYNN PICKNETT IS COMMITTED TO TRYING TO PROVE

THIS THEORY BEYOND DOUBT.

YET THERE'S STILL THE POSSIBILITY

THAT THE TURIN SHROUD IS GENUINE, AND TO THIS DAY,

SCIENTISTS CONTINUE CARRYING OUT EXPERIMENTS

TO TRY TO VERIFY ITS AUTHENTICITY.

♪

Narrator: PRESERVED IN TURIN CATHEDRAL

IS ONE OF CHRISTIANITY'S MOST RENOWNED HOLY RELICS --

THE TURIN SHROUD.

SAID TO BE JESUS'S BURIAL CLOTH, BLOODSTAIN-PATTERN ANALYSIS

HAS HINTED THAT SOME OF THE BLOOD STAINS ON IT

COULD BE PHYSIOLOGICALLY ACCURATE.

SKEPTICS, HOWEVER, BELIEVE IT'S A MEDIEVAL FORGERY,

PERHAPS EVEN AN EARLY PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN BY LEONARDO DA VINCI.

BUT ALTHOUGH RADIOCARBON TESTS HAVE DATED THE SHROUD

TO THE 13th OR 14th CENTURIES,

SOME PEOPLE HAVE IDENTIFIED INACCURACIES

IN THE SCIENTIFIC PROCESS USED.

Selwood: SO, ONE PROMINENT LINE OF ARGUMENT

IS THAT SOOT FROM THE FIRE THAT THE SHROUD SUFFERED

IMPREGNATED THE FIBERS,

AND THAT HAS THROWN OFF THE CARBON DATING.

WELL, IT'S A THEORY THAT YOU CAN PUT FORWARD.

BUT THE SCIENTISTS WHO CONDUCTED THE CARBON DATING

HAVE ADDRESSED THESE ISSUES AND SAY ABSOLUTELY NOT.

THEIR TESTS TAKE ACCOUNT OF THESE FACTORS.

I HAVE FRIENDS THAT ARE PRO-SHROUD.

I FELT -- WHEN THE CARBON DATING WAS DONE,

I FELT GENUINELY SORRY FOR THEM

BECAUSE I KNEW THEY WERE BRIEFLY -- ONLY BRIEFLY --

THEY WERE DEVASTATED.

AND THEN THEY CAME UP WITH SEVERAL HOPEFUL THEORIES,

AND THEY WERE BACK OFF AND RUNNING AGAIN.

Narrator: ONE LONGSTANDING TURIN SHROUD RESEARCHER

WHO DOUBTS THE RELIABILITY OF THE CARBON-DATING RESULTS

IS STEPHEN MATTINGLY,

RECENTLY RETIRED AFTER MORE THAN 30 YEARS OF WORKING

AS A PROFESSOR OF MICROBIOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS.

♪

Mattingly: WHEN THE RADIOCARBON DATE CAME OUT,

THAT KIND OF CONVINCED ME AT THE TIME THAT IT WAS MEDIEVAL

AND IT WAS SOME KIND OF FAKE.

BUT SINCE I'VE THOUGHT ABOUT IT AND GOT INVOLVED IN RESEARCH

AND THOUGHT ABOUT IT SCIENTIFICALLY,

I REALIZE NOW THAT IT IS THE ACTUAL SHROUD OF JESUS.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO MATTINGLY,

THE SHROUD WAS DATED INACCURATELY TO MEDIEVAL TIMES,

NOT ONLY BECAUSE OF THE MEDIEVAL FIRE,

BUT ALSO BECAUSE AIRBORNE BACTERIA

ACCUMULATED ON THE SHROUD OVER THE CENTURIES.

Mattingly: A COMMON CONTAMINANT, BACILLUS SUBTILIS,

ARE IN THE AIR EVERYWHERE.

EACH DAY, THEY'RE ADDING NEW CARBON, RADIOACTIVE CARBON.

SO THE CONTAMINATION ISSUE IS SOMETHING WE CAN'T DEAL WITH

AS FAR AS THE SHROUD OF TURIN IS CONCERNED.

Narrator: MOST SIGNIFICANTLY, MATTINGLY BELIEVES

THAT NOT ONLY DID AIRBORNE BACTERIA

AFFECT THE CARBON DATING OF THE SHROUD,

SKIN BACTERIA ALSO CREATED THE MYSTERIOUS IMAGE

OF JESUS ON THE SHROUD.

MATTINGLY SAYS THAT TO CREATE A REALLY STRONG IMAGE ON CLOTH,

YOU NEED HUGE NUMBERS OF BACTERIA.

AND HE SAYS THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED

AS A RESULT OF JESUS'S CRUCIFIXION,

HIS BLOODY DEATH PROVIDED THE PERFECT CONDITIONS

FOR BACTERIA TO MULTIPLY ON HIS SKIN.

Mattingly: WE KNOW THAT THEY ADDED A CROWN OF THORNS

EARLY ON, AND ANYBODY THAT'S EVER HAD A WOUND IN THE HEAD

KNOWS THAT IT BLEEDS FOREVER.

THERE ARE REPORTS OF OVER 100 SCOURGE MARKS

ON THE BODY, FRONT AND BACK, THAT WOULD ALSO BLEED.

SO WE HAVE AN INDIVIDUAL

THAT, ESSENTIALLY, IS BLEEDING CONTINUOUSLY.

AND THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES TO THAT --

MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE FACT THAT JESUS'S

OWN SKIN BACTERIA BEGAN TO GROW.

THEY HAD ALL THE NUTRIENTS THEY NEEDED,

AND THEY WERE DOUBLED EVERY 30 MINUTES.

SO WHEN THE SHROUD WAS REMOVED,

IT LEFT THE EXCESS BACTERIA FROM HIS SKIN ON THE SHROUD.

AND THAT'S WHAT CREATED THIS WONDERFUL IMAGE.

♪

Narrator: TO DEMONSTRATE SCIENTIFICALLY

THAT JESUS'S SKIN BACTERIA

COULD HAVE CREATED THE IMAGE ON THE TURIN SHROUD,

MATTINGLY IS GOING TO COAT HIS HAND WITH SOME SKIN BACTERIA

GROWN IN HIS HOME LABORATORY

AND THEN IMPRINT HIS HAND ON SOME CLOTH.

AND I BEGIN COATING MY FINGERS.

THIS IS STAPHYLOCOCCUS EPIDERMIDIS,

WHICH I OBTAINED FROM MY OWN HAND AND GREW IT UP.

AND WE JUST KEEP REPEATING THIS.

♪

Narrator: BUT SKEPTICS FIND IT DIFFICULT

TO BELIEVE BACTERIA ON JESUS'S BODY

COULD HAVE CREATED THE IMAGE ON THE TURIN SHROUD,

AND THEY POINT TO THE BIBLE FOR SUPPORTING EVIDENCE.

THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS, THOSE THAT SEE THINGS THE SAME WAY --

MATTHEW, MARK, AND LUKE --

THEY DO SPEAK ABOUT JESUS'S BODY BEING WRAPPED IN A SHROUD.

BUT JOHN, WHICH MANY THINK IS THE MOST ACCURATE GOSPEL,

ACTUALLY DOESN'T.

IT TALKS ABOUT LINEN STRIPS AND EVEN A SEPARATE HEADPIECE.

BUT PERHAPS THE MOST FASCINATING THING ABOUT THE GOSPELS

IS WHAT THEY DON'T SAY.

IF THERE HAD BEEN AN IMAGE ON THE SHROUD,

YOU WOULD EXPECT THEM TO HAVE RECORDED THAT.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO MATTINGLY, HOWEVER,

JESUS'S IMAGE ON THE SHROUD MAY SIMPLY HAVE NEEDED TIME

TO DEVELOP AFTER THE SHROUD WAS REMOVED FROM HIS BODY.

AS HIS EXPERIMENT SHOWS, AN IMAGE CREATED BY BACTERIA

DOES TAKE A LONG TIME TO DEVELOP.

Mattingly: YOU REALLY CAN'T SEE MUCH RIGHT NOW.

THIS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP OVER TIME.

Narrator: THE HOPED-FOR IMAGE ON THE CLOTH

IS JUST BARELY VISIBLE FOR NOW.

BUT THE EXPERIMENT WAS BRIEF.

AND MATTINGLY SAYS THAT JESUS'S BODY WAS COVERED

WITH BILLIONS MORE BACTERIA THAN HIS OWN HAND.

AND JESUS'S IMAGE ALSO HAD MUCH LONGER TO FORM

ON HIS BURIAL SHROUD.

TO DEMONSTRATE THE PRINCIPLE,

MATTINGLY SHOWS AN IMAGE OF HIS HAND ON HIS COMPUTER

THAT HE CREATED WITH BACTERIA YEARS AGO.

THIS WAS DONE ABOUT 20 YEARS AGO,

AND THE COLOR HAS DEVELOPED OVER TIME.

THIS IS THE NEGATIVE, AND IT SHOWS EVEN MORE DETAIL.

♪

Narrator: ALTHOUGH HIS THEORY IS VERY CONTROVERSIAL,

AS A RESULT OF HIS EXPERIMENTS,

MATTINGLY IS CONVINCED THAT THE IMAGE ON THE TURIN SHROUD

WAS CREATED BY BACTERIA

MULTIPLYING ON JESUS'S SKIN DURING HIS BLOODY DEATH.

AS A CHRISTIAN, HE FINDS JESUS'S IMAGE ON THE SHROUD REASSURING.

Mattingly: I HAVE NO TROUBLE BEING A CHRISTIAN

AND A SCIENTIST,

BUT THE TRUTH HAS TO BE THROUGH SCIENCE.

I THINK WE CAN BE CERTAIN THAT THIS IS

THE BURIAL WRAPPING OF JESUS.

WE TALK ABOUT WANTING TO SEE HIS FACE IN OUR PRAYERS,

AND HERE IT IS.

HERE IS HIS FACE.

WHAT DOES JESUS LOOK LIKE?

WE KNOW WHAT HE LOOKS LIKE. WE KNOW HOW TALL HE WAS.

WE KNOW MANY THINGS ABOUT HIM BECAUSE OF THE SHROUD.

Narrator: COULD STEPHEN MATTINGLY'S

REMARKABLE THEORY BE TRUE?

DID BACTERIA FROM JESUS'S BODY

REALLY CREATE THE IMAGE ON THE TURIN SHROUD?

SOME SKEPTICS BELIEVE JESUS'S PHYSICAL REPRESENTATION

ON THE SHROUD ISN'T REALISTIC,

SUGGESTING THAT THE SHROUD MAY BE A MEDIEVAL FAKE.

TO HELP SOLVE THE MYSTERY, SOME LOOK FOR CLUES

IN THE HISTORY OF ROMAN CRUCIFIXIONS.

♪

Narrator: CHRISTIANITY'S MOST FAMOUS HOLY RELIC,

THE TURIN SHROUD,

IS SAID TO BE JESUS'S BURIAL CLOTH

BEARING THE BLOODY IMPRINTS OF HIS CRUCIFIED BODY.

BUT IS IT, IN FACT, A MEDIEVAL FORGERY?

THE HISTORY OF ROMAN CRUCIFIXIONS OFFERS A CLUE.

McMahon: PEOPLE WHO WERE CRUCIFIED

WERE NORMALLY CRUCIFIED AS SEDITIONARIES.

THEY'D COMMITTED TREASON AGAINST THE ROMAN STATE.

AND SO, NORMALLY, THEY WERE LEFT TO JUST HANG THERE,

BEING PECKED UP BY THE BIRDS AND EATEN BY ANIMALS,

AND THEIR BODY WOULD HAVE ROTTED ON THE CROSS.

SO THE IDEA OF SOMEBODY BEING TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS

AND BEING GIVEN A LOVELY BURIAL WITH A SHROUD --

HIGHLY UNLIKELY.

Narrator: SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE ALSO PROVIDES IMPORTANT CLUES

ABOUT WHETHER THE TURIN SHROUD IS GENUINE.

BLOODSTAIN-PATTERN ANALYSIS HAS SHOWN

JESUS'S WRIST WOUNDS ARE REALISTIC

IF HE WAS CRUCIFIED WITH HIS HANDS HIGH ABOVE HIS HEAD.

BUT WHAT ABOUT OTHER BLOODSTAINS ON THE SHROUD?

IN PARTICULAR, THE BIBLE MENTIONS A WOUND

CAUSED BY A ROMAN SOLDIER WHO STABBED JESUS IN THE CHEST.

BELIEVERS IN THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE TURIN SHROUD

SAY THE CHEST WOUND LEFT THIS BLOODSTAIN

AND, ALSO, ON THE BACK OF JESUS'S BODY,

THIS WIDE BELT OF BLOOD.

IS THIS REALISTIC?

TO REPLICATE THE SPEAR WOUND,

FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGIST DR. MATTEO BORRINI

USES A SIMPLE METHOD -- A SPONGE ON THE END OF A SPATULA.

Borrini: THIS IS THE MOST TO-REALITY REPRODUCTION

OF WHAT COULD HAPPEN.

AND HERE YOU SEE THE DIRECTION OF THE BLOOD

FOLLOWING THE GRAVITY.

BUT WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

HERE THE BLOOD IS GOING DOWN

AND IS NOT GOING, IN ANY WAY, BEHIND.

Narrator: THEN HOW COULD THE BELT OF BLOOD

ON THE BACK OF JESUS'S BODY ON THE TURIN SHROUD

HAVE BEEN CAUSED BY THE SPEAR WOUND?

IT'S BEEN SAID BY SOME THAT THE BELT OF BLOOD

COULD HAVE BEEN CREATED IF JESUS CONTINUED TO BLEED

AFTER HE WAS TAKEN DOWN, DEAD, FROM THE CROSS

AND WAS LYING FLAT IN HIS TOMB.

BUT IS THIS POSSIBLE?

I WANT TO TRY TO REPLICATE THIS SECOND BLEEDING,

SO THIS, FOR US, IS REPRESENTING THE SHROUD.

AND THIS IS THE INDIVIDUAL BLEEDING THROUGH THE WOUND

ON THE CHEST.

♪

IT'S EXPANDING.

AND NOW WE MOVE THE BODY, IF YOU CAN HELP ME.

VERY GOOD. GREAT.

NOW LOOK AT THIS.

THERE IS A BIG POOL OF BLOOD HERE ON THE FUNERARY CLOTH.

AND THIS IS WHAT WE DO NOT SEE IN THE SHROUD OF TURIN.

AND THIS IS ABSOLUTELY NON-REALISTIC.

Narrator: OVERALL, BLOOD-PATTERN ANALYSIS

CANNOT RECREATE THE WIDE BELT OF BLOOD

ON THE BACK OF THE TURIN SHROUD, SUPPOSEDLY CAUSED

BY THE SPEAR WOUND TO THE FRONT OF JESUS'S BODY.

♪

McMahon: I THINK IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT PROFESSOR BORRINI'S

TEST PRETTY MUCH PROVES THAT THE SHROUD IS A FAKE,

AT LEAST ON THE CRITERIA THAT HE USED,

MAINLY BECAUSE THE FRONT AND THE BACK SIMPLY DON'T MATCH

IN TERMS OF THE WOUNDS AND THE DIRECTION OF BLOOD.

IN MY PERSONAL OPINION, I THINK THAT THE SHROUD OF TURIN

WAS MADE IN THE MEDIEVAL TIME

WHERE THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WERE ILLITERATE

SO WERE NOT ABLE TO READ THE BIBLE AND THE GOSPELS,

SO WAS LIKE A PAINTING TO EDUCATE PEOPLE.

Narrator: IF THE TURIN SHROUD WAS CREATED AS A PAINTING

TO ENLIGHTEN MEDIEVAL CHRISTIANS,

THIS COULD EXPLAIN ANOTHER SURPRISING

FEATURE OF THE SHROUD.

WHILE THE AVERAGE HEIGHT OF A MAN

IN PALESTINE 2,000 YEARS AGO WAS ABOUT 5 FEET, 5 INCHES,

JESUS, AS HE APPEARS ON THE SHROUD, IS MUCH TALLER,

BETWEEN 5-FEET-10 AND 6-FEET-1.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE SHROUD IMAGE,

IMMEDIATELY, YOU'RE STRUCK BY THIS VERY LONG, THIN FIGURE

THAT'S VERY UNNATURAL IN ITS ELONGATION.

AND HAVING STUDIED CHRISTIAN ICONOGRAPHY,

I RECOGNIZED THAT THIS WAS JUST FRENCH GOTHIC ART,

WAS THE MOST OBVIOUS EXPLANATION,

AND THAT FIT, YOU SEE,

WITH ITS ORIGIN IN FRANCE IN THE GOTHIC PERIOD.

Narrator: IT'S CONCEIVABLE THAT JESUS'S ELONGATED BODY

ON THE TURIN SHROUD

JUST INDICATES HE WAS UNUSUALLY TALL.

BUT THE SUGGESTION THAT THE SHROUD

IS A GOTHIC MEDIEVAL PAINTING

DESIGNED TO EDUCATE THE FAITHFUL IS A STRONG POSSIBILITY.

IF THE TURIN SHROUD IS ACTUALLY A PAINTING,

IN THEORY, IT SHOULD BE POSSIBLE TO REPLICATE IT,

RECREATING ON CLOTH A VERY SIMILAR IMAGE OF JESUS.

BUT CAN A CONVINCING FULL-SCALE REPLICA

OF THE TURIN SHROUD BE CREATED TODAY?

♪

Narrator: THE FAMOUS TURIN SHROUD IS SAID TO BE

THE BURIAL CLOTH IN WHICH JESUS WAS WRAPPED

AFTER HIS CRUCIFIXION.

MANY PEOPLE, INCLUDING SOME SCIENTISTS,

BELIEVE THE IMAGE ON THE TURIN SHROUD IS GENUINELY JESUS,

AMAZINGLY SHOWING US EXACTLY WHAT HE LOOKED LIKE.

BUT HISTORICAL AND SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE,

INCLUDING ANALYSIS OF THE SHROUD'S

PHYSICAL REPRESENTATION OF JESUS AND HIS BLOODSTAINS,

LEADS MANY PEOPLE TO THINK OTHERWISE.

THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT THIS IS THE ACTUAL

BURIAL SHROUD OF CHRIST.

IN FACT, IT HAPPENS THAT MOST OF THE EVIDENCE POINTS TOWARDS IT

BEING A MEDIEVAL CREATION.

Selwood: THE TURIN SHROUD IS NOT GENUINE.

IT IS A VERY IMPRESSIVE, HIGHLY ACCOMPLISHED,

RATHER WONDERFUL PIECE OF MEDIEVAL ART.

Narrator: IF THE TURIN SHROUD IS TRULY A PIECE OF MEDIEVAL ART

DESIGNED TO EDUCATE THE CHRISTIAN FAITHFUL,

THEN IT SHOULD BE POSSIBLE TO CREATE A CONVINCING,

FULL-SCALE REPLICA OF IT.

♪

LUIGI GARLASCHELLI,

FORMER PROFESSOR OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PAVIA IN ITALY,

HAS TRIED TO DO THIS.

BUT BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO CREATE

A REALISTIC REPLICA OF THE SHROUD,

GARLASCHELLI FIRST RULED OUT HOW IT WASN'T MADE.

Garlaschelli: IF WE THINK THAT IT WAS A MEDIEVAL ARTIST

WHO MADE THE SHROUD,

PROBABLY, THE FIRST ATTEMPT HE DID WAS TO SEE

WHAT THE PRINT OF A REAL BODY LEAVES ON A LINEN CLOTH.

SO WE TRIED, ACTUALLY, THIS.

WE COVERED A VOLUNTEER WITH RED PAINT,

AND WE PUT A SHEET FLAT ON HIM.

AND THIS IS THE RESULT.

AS YOU SEE, IT LOOKS VERY BAD.

IT'S DISTORTED.

LOOK AT THE FACE -- COMPLETELY AWFUL.

SO THIS IS NOT HOW THE SHROUD WAS MADE.

IT'S NOT THE CONTACT PRINT OF A REAL BODY.

Narrator: INSTEAD, GARLASCHELLI TRIED TO RECREATE THE SHROUD

USING A TECHNIQUE KNOWN AS BAS RELIEF,

RUBBING THE OUTSIDE OF A SHEET

TO REVEAL THE CONTOURS OF THE BODY WRAPPED WITHIN.

Garlaschelli: WE HAVE A VOLUNTEER UNDER THE SHEET,

AND WE HAVE RUBBED, WITH A DRY PIGMENT, THE CLOTH,

SO WE HAVE FOLLOWED THE SHAPE OF THE BODY.

AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S NOT DISTORTED.

THIS IS MORE SHROUD-LIKE.

Narrator: UNLIKE THE REST OF THE BODY,

A REAL FACE STILL APPEARS DISTORTED

USING THE BAS-RELIEF TECHNIQUE.

SO THE FACE OF JESUS IN THIS IMAGE

WAS CREATED USING A CONTOURED, FLAT, PLASTER MOLD.

♪

SO, THIS IS A VERY SIMPLE TECHNIQUE

AVAILABLE IN THE MIDDLE AGE.

♪

THIS IS THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN HAVE A FACE UNDISTORTED.

Narrator: GARLASCHELLI IS USING BLUE PIGMENT

TO HIGHLIGHT THE FACT THAT THE COLOR DOESN'T MATTER.

HE SAYS THE FAINT IMAGE OF JESUS ON THE SHROUD

IS A KIND OF GHOST IMAGE OF REDDISH ACIDIC IMPURITIES

LEFT BEHIND BY THE ORIGINAL COLORED PIGMENT

THAT HAS COMPLETELY FADED AWAY OVER THE CENTURIES.

♪

NOW WE WILL HAVE TO ARTIFICIALLY AGE THIS IMAGE

BECAUSE THE SHROUD HAD CENTURIES TO DO SO,

BUT WE WANT TO DO THAT IN AN HOUR,

SO WE WILL PUT IT INTO AN OVEN AT 160 DEGREES CELSIUS

TO SIMULATE THE AGING.

♪

Narrator: AFTER AN HOUR IN THE OVEN,

THE IMAGE IS WASHED TO REMOVE THE PIGMENT.

ONLY THE PIGMENT'S ACIDIC IMPURITIES

NOW REMAIN ON THE CLOTH, WHICH IS THEN IRONED DRY.

NOW THE PIGMENT IS GONE, AND THIS IS THE IMAGE

ON THE SURFACE OF THE LINEN -- NOTHING BEHIND.

AND THE FINAL TEST WOULD BE

TO TAKE THE NEGATIVE OF THIS IMAGE

AND SEE IF IT LOOKS LIKE THAT OF THE SHROUD.

SO JUST A QUICK TEST WITH A CELLPHONE.

AND... [ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]

ALL RIGHT.

YEAH, THIS IS THE NEGATIVE.

IT LOOKS LIKE THE SHROUD OF TURIN.

♪

Narrator: AFTER ADDING HIS HOMEMADE FACIAL REPLICA

TO A SIMILARLY AGED BAS RELIEF OF THE VOLUNTEER'S BODY,

GARLASCHELLI THEN PAINTED ON BLOODSTAINS

IN ORDER TO CREATE A FULL-SCALE DUPLICATE OF THE TURIN SHROUD.

PERSONALLY, I FIND PROFESSOR GARLASCHELLI'S

BAS-RELIEF ANALYSIS EXTREMELY CONVINCING.

THE IMAGE THAT RESULTED FROM THIS TECHNIQUE

IS ONE THAT CLOSELY RESEMBLES WHAT WE SEE ON THE SHROUD,

SO, REALLY, A REMARKABLE JOB.

♪

Narrator: OTHERS AREN'T CONVINCED

BY GARLASCHELLI'S RE-CREATION

AND SAY THAT IT DOESN'T PROVE THE TURIN SHROUD WAS PAINTED.

IN PARTICULAR, SHROUD RESEARCHER LYNN PICKNETT

REMAINS CONVINCED THAT THE TURIN SHROUD

IS THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH CREATED BY LEONARDO DA VINCI.

AND SHE CLAIMS TO HAVE FOUND FURTHER EVIDENCE TO PROVE IT.

♪

Narrator: PRESERVED IN TURIN CATHEDRAL

IS ONE OF CHRISTIANITY'S MOST FAMOUS HOLY RELICS --

THE TURIN SHROUD.

SAID TO BE JESUS'S BURIAL CLOTH,

IT BEARS THE BLOODY IMPRINT OF HIS CRUCIFIED BODY.

SKEPTICS BELIEVE THAT IT ISN'T GENUINE

AND IT IS, IN FACT, A PIECE OF MEDIEVAL ART.

A PROMISING ATTEMPT TO REPLICATE THE SHROUD

USING A BAS-RELIEF TECHNIQUE

SUGGESTS IT COULD BE A MEDIEVAL PAINTING.

BUT SHROUD RESEARCHER LYNN PICKNETT REMAINS CONVINCED

THAT IT IS INSTEAD THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH

CREATED BY THE ONE AND ONLY LEONARDO DA VINCI.

Picknett: THE SHROUD HAS OFTEN BEEN SAID

TO BEHAVE LIKE A PHOTOGRAPH.

WHEN SEEN IN PHOTOGRAPHIC NEGATIVE,

IT ALMOST LEAPS INTO LIFE, INTO FOCUS.

IT'S QUITE ASTONISHING.

Narrator: LYNN'S THEORY THAT THE TURIN SHROUD

IS THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH IS VERY CONTENTIOUS.

BUT SHE HAS CARRIED OUT EXPERIMENTS

THAT INDICATE IT IS POSSIBLE.

BY PROJECTING AN ILLUMINATED CAST OF A GIRL'S HEAD

ONTO A CLOTH IN A CAMERA OBSCURA,

JUST LIKE THE ONE SHE BELIEVES WAS USED BY LEONARDO DA VINCI,

SHE WAS ABLE TO CREATE A RECOGNIZABLY SHROUD-LIKE IMAGE

OF THE GIRL'S FACE.

AS FOR THE FACE THAT LEONARDO USED

WHEN HE CREATED THE TURIN SHROUD,

LYNN BELIEVES, VERY CONTROVERSIALLY,

THAT LEONARDO USED HIS OWN FACE TO REPRESENT JESUS.

LEONARDO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT,

"YEAH, WELL, YOU'RE NOT GONNA GET JESUS, OBVIOUSLY.

YOU'RE GOING TO GET MY FACE."

LEONARDO WAS A HERETIC.

HE HAD VERY PASSIONATE BELIEFS, AND THEY WEREN'T CHRISTIAN.

IN FACT, THERE'S EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE

THAT HE HATED CHRISTIANITY, AND THEREFORE,

FAKING THE TURIN SHROUD WAS AN ACT OF REBELLION.

IT JUST WOULD HAVE APPEALED TO HIM.

♪

Narrator: LYNN'S ENTIRE THEORY ABOUT LEONARDO DA VINCI,

HOWEVER, IS CONSIDERED VERY FAR-FETCHED

BY MOST OBSERVERS.

THE CLAIM THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI MADE THE SHROUD OF TURIN --

IT'S JUST NOT CREDIBLE.

I LOVE THIS THEORY THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI

SOMEHOW CREATED THE TURIN SHROUD.

HE WAS AN AMAZING VISIONARY MAN, BUT EVEN HE COULDN'T HAVE

CREATED SOMETHING BEFORE HE WAS BORN.

Narrator: THE PROBLEM IS THAT LEONARDO WASN'T BORN UNTIL 1452,

WHEREAS THE FIRST GENERALLY ACCEPTED HISTORICAL ACCOUNT

OF THE SHROUD PLACES IT IN FRANCE 100 YEARS EARLIER.

HOWEVER, LYNN CLAIMS THAT THE TURIN SHROUD

ISN'T THE SAME SHROUD AS THE ONE DISPLAYED IN THE 1350s.

SHE SAYS IT'S SIGNIFICANT THAT THIS EARLIER SHROUD

WAS SOON DENOUNCED BY THE LOCAL BISHOP AS AN ARTISTIC FORGERY.

Picknett: UNFORTUNATELY, IT WAS A BLATANT PAINTING,

SO, CLEARLY, WHAT HAPPENED WAS

THE CHURCH LIKED THE IDEA OF HAVING A SHROUD,

THE ULTIMATE CHRISTIAN RELIC, JESUS'S OWN IMAGE AND BLOOD.

BUT THEY DIDN'T WANT THAT ONE.

Narrator: ACCORDING TO LYNN,

THE ORIGINAL, UNCONVINCING SHROUD

WAS SECRETLY SWITCHED BY THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

IN THE LATE 15th CENTURY

WHEN IT WAS TAKEN FROM FRANCE TO ITALY.

LEONARDO'S NEW, MUCH MORE REALISTIC SHROUD

WAS THEN DISPLAYED IN ITS PLACE

IN ORDER TO ATTRACT AS MANY PILGRIMS AS POSSIBLE.

♪

DESPITE CRITICS WHO SAY THIS IS A FANCIFUL

AND HIGHLY UNLIKELY STORY,

LYNN CLAIMS TO HAVE FOUND FURTHER EVIDENCE

THAT LEONARDO DA VINCI REALLY DID CREATE THE TURIN SHROUD.

SHE'S FOUND CLUES IN THE SALVATOR MUNDI,

THE FAMOUS PICTURE OF JESUS

SAID TO HAVE BEEN PAINTED BY LEONARDO.

IF YOU SPLIT THE SALVATOR MUNDI DOWN THE MIDDLE

AND YOU HAVE THAT ON ONE SIDE AND ON THE OTHER SIDE,

YOU HAVE A PICTURE OF THE SHROUD OF TURIN,

WHAT YOU GET IS ASTONISHING.

EVERY SINGLE TINY FEATURE LINES UP EXACTLY.

THE SALVATOR MUNDI, STRANGE THOUGH IT MAY SEEM,

IS ACTUALLY ALSO LEONARDO.

BUT THERE'S MORE.

SALVATOR MUNDI IS HOLDING A GLOBE -- A CRYSTAL GLOBE.

AND PEOPLE HAVE SAID, "WELL, OF COURSE,

THE NAME MEANS SAVIOR OF THE WORLD,

SO THAT'S IT -- HE'S GOT THE WORLD IN HIS HAND."

BUT IT'S ACTUALLY A CRYSTAL.

AND WHAT DID LEONARDO USE TO CREATE THE IMAGE OF THE SHROUD?

A CAMERA OBSCURA IN WHICH HE PUT A LENS MADE OF CRYSTAL.

THIS IS HIS NEAREST THING TO A CONFESSION

HE CREATED THE TURIN SHROUD.

♪

Narrator: WHATEVER THE TRUTH IS ABOUT THIS AMAZING THEORY,

THE DEBATE ABOUT THE TURIN SHROUD

WILL SURELY CONTINUE FOR YEARS.

IS IT THE WORLD'S FIRST PHOTOGRAPH?

IS IT A MEDIEVAL PAINTING?

OR IS IT THE GENUINE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS,

IMPRINTED, PERHAPS, BY BACTERIA

WITH THE IMAGE OF HIS CRUCIFIED BODY?

ALTHOUGH CARBON DATING HAS PROVIDED

COMPELLING SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE

SUGGESTING THAT THE TURIN SHROUD IS NOT GENUINE,

BELIEVERS CONTINUE TO DISPUTE THE STUDY'S ACCURACY.

I JUST THINK THIS TELLS US THAT BELIEVERS WILL ALWAYS FIND FAULT

WITH ANY AMOUNT OF EVIDENCE THAT THEY'RE PRESENTED WITH.

Garlaschelli: I THINK THAT FOR SOME PEOPLE,

THE IDEA THAT THE SHROUD IS THE REAL THING

THAT WRAPPED JESUS CHRIST'S BODY

IS TOO BEAUTIFUL TO BE IMPOSSIBLE.

McMahon: YOU COULD SAY THAT THE TURIN SHROUD SHOWS

THAT WE'RE A WORLD DIVIDED BETWEEN BELIEVERS

AND NONBELIEVERS, BETWEEN THOSE WHO WANT PROOF --

SCIENTIFIC, RATIONAL PROOF, IF YOU WANT,

AND THOSE WHO BELIEVE THAT FAITH IS IMPORTANT.

FOR THEM, BELIEVING THAT IT IS THE IMAGE OF JESUS IS ENOUGH.

THAT SENSE OF WONDER IS ENOUGH FOR THEM.

Selwood: IN A WAY, THE SHROUD BRINGS OUT WONDERFULLY

THAT CONFLICT THAT WE ALL HAVE

BETWEEN THE RATIONAL AND THE ROMANTIC.

IT'S WONDERFUL TO BELIEVE THAT THE SHROUD MIGHT BE REAL.

IT'S A LITTLE TEDIOUS TO HAVE SCIENCE TELL ONE IT ISN'T,

BUT WE ALL HAVE WITHIN US THAT NEED FOR BOTH.

THAT SPARK OF THE IMAGINATION IS ALWAYS THERE,

AND FOR SO LONG AS HUMANS HAVE THAT,

THE SHROUD WILL HAVE ITS SUPPORTERS.

Narrator: AND SO, REGARDLESS OF THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE

INDICATING WHETHER IT IS

OR ISN'T THE GENUINE BURIAL CLOTH OF JESUS,

FOR MILLIONS OF PEOPLE,

THE TURIN SHROUD WILL UNDOUBTEDLY

LONG REMAIN ONE OF THE WORLD'S

MOST REVERED AND ICONIC RELIGIOUS TREASURES.