The True Story of Jesus — Page 96
as 96 blood marks, one can infer that Jesus as was alive when wrapped in this cloth. The cloth is 434 centimetres long and 109 centimetres wide. Scientists have performed many tests on the shroud to see whether it is genuine or not. In 1978, a team of researchers found that the bloodstains on the cloth appeared to be human blood. The team concluded that the image was probably caused by a human body. Other scientists found that the pollens and limestone dust from the cloth could have come from the region of Palestine. However, the results were not conclusive. In 1988, scientists used another test called radio carbon dat- ing on the cloth from the shroud in order to determine its age. The results indicated that the shroud dates back to about 1200. The Roman churches accepted the results and declared that the Turin Shroud was fake. However, some historians and scientists have challenged this conclusion. The controversy is far from over. Moreover, those who regard it as fake and declare that the imprint on the shroud was the work of an artist have never given a satisfactory explanation of the negative image on the cloth. It is difficult enough to reproduce the positive of a picture with such delicate light shading, but to achieve a perfect negative by artifi- cial means is very hard to imagine. For those who accept it as genuine and regard it as very holy, it furnishes a corroborative evidence in support of the theory that the body of Jesus as was removed from the cross while he was still alive.