A study published in the scientific journal Archaeometry has opened a new track in the secular mystery of the Sacra Shroud of Turin. The image impressed on the famous sheet, according to the results of the research ,. On the contrary, the shape and proportions are much more compatible with a bas -reliefthat is, a flat sculpture, similar to those made in medieval times.
The researchers used free and accessible digital tools to everyone, such as Makehuman, Blender And Cloudcompareto simulate contact between a human body and a sheet. The imprint left by a real body is too wide and deformed, while that generated by a flat model reproduces faithfully the contours visible on the Shroud. A detail that cannot be ignored.
The digital comparison between a real body and a bas -relief
Anyone who has ever wrapped an object with a cloth knows that the fabric does not rest uniformly. This also applies to a human body. When scholars simulated the projection of a sheet on a human three -dimensional model, the resulting imprint was wider, distortedand with not very realistic proportions, especially in the bust and face area.
This effect has a name: Agamemnon mask effect. He takes inspiration from a funeral mask of ancient Greece who, once flattened, loses his real proportions. The same happens with the image generated by a real body: distortion is inevitable.
But when the researchers repeated the experiment with a bas -relief – a sort of flat sculpture – the resulting image was much more similar to that of the Shroud. No abnormal dilation, no distortion of the face or body. This suggests that the image is not the result of contact with a corpse, but of an artistic object.
Cicero Moraes, the main author of the study, explains it directly:
The bas -relief model shows less distortion and is very close to the original image of the Shroud. The human body, on the other hand, produces a decidedly more deformed image.
What does this study tell us about the origin of the Shroud?
The study: When Was the Shroud made? But it offers an important clue on as it may have been created. The fact that a bas -relief is compatible with the image impressed on the sheet opens the way for one artistic explanationmore than religious or scientific.
And this hypothesis connects with other research. For example, the famous dating to the 1989 radiocarbon had already placed the Shroud between 1260 and 1390 AD, that is, in the middle of the Middle Ages. However, in 2005 a subsequent study had contested those results, claiming that the analyzed sample came from a repaired area of the sheet, therefore more recent.
In 2022, another analysis, this time on a single wire of the fabric and with a technique called WAXS (Wide Angle X-Ray Scattering)had even proposed a dating to The century ADclose to the period in which Jesus lived. But this method remains controversial and not accepted by the whole scientific community.
Finally, other studies have also raised doubts about blood stains present on the Shroud: some researchers have defined them “Completely unrealistic” and incompatible with the position of a relaxed body. This also strengthens the hypothesis that the image was Added afterperhaps with artistic or devotional purposes.
In addition to the scientific results, this study also offers A tool for everyone: used software are free and open source. It means that anyone, even from home, can replicate the experimentcheck the results or use them to explore other mysteries in history.
This research shows how much technology can help read the past in a new way. Science, art and history can dialogue, offering answers without preconceptions, but with method and rigor.
In short, it does not tell us if the Shroud is authentic or not, but it reminds us of an important thing: understand where we come from is also possible with today’s toolsand the truth is not always hidden in mystery. Sometimes a click is enough.
