- The Shroud of Turin, believed by some
to be the burial shroud of Jesus Christ, is the focus of new controversy
as a scientist claims to have isolated DNA from the "blood of Jesus."
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- The Shroud of Turin will be at the centre
of fresh controversy next month when a scientist details his claims to
have isolated DNA from the "blood of Jesus."
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- Dr. Leoncio Garza-Valdes, a former professor
of microbiology, is the latest to question the scientific consensus that
the shroud many believe was used to wrap the body of Jesus after the crucifixion
is a medieval forgery.
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- In his book, The DNA of God?, Dr. Garza-Valdes
describes cloning tests carried out by colleagues at the University of
Texas which show that the "red'' areas on the cloth, far from being
paint, are ancient blood stains of a group consistent with a Jewish male.
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- In addition, fragments of wood were found
with the blood which, he believes, could have come from the cross. The
fragments were from the oak tree, common in Jerusalem.
-
- But his claims have been greeted with
caution by skeptics, who say that he has yet to provide convincing evidence
that the shroud is not a fake.
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- Dr. Garza-Valdes, who first studied segments
of the shroud in Turin in 1993, is already known for challenging carbon
dating tests carried out in 1988, which put the date of the cloth between
1260 and 1390.
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- A number of experts subsequently concluded
the ghostly image of a man on the cloth must be that of a crucified crusader,
a painting or even an early form of photography, devised by Leonardo da
Vinci.
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- But Dr. Garza-Valdes and Professor Stephen
Mattingly, a microbiologist at Texas University, have excited believers
in the shroud by finding that the cloth is covered with a barely visible
living "bioplastic'' coating of bacteria and fungi.
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- This, the scientists believe, developed
over the centuries "like a coral reef'' and could have skewed the
1988 carbon dating tests.
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- The book details the experiments that
show the "blood'' on the shroud is ancient and contains XY chromosomes,
which establishes it as human and male.
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- The tests were conducted by a team headed
by Dr. Victor Tryon, director of the Centre for Advanced DNA Technology
at the University of Texas Health Science Centre.
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- Gene segments from the stains were cloned
and the analysis showed that the blood came from a male with an AB blood
type, common among Jewish people.
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- Dr. Garza-Valdes, a practising Catholic,
said the placing of the blood traces strongly indicated that the body was
that of Jesus.
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- "Not many people in the first century
suffered all those lesions, the crucifixion wounds, the crown of thorns,
the spear wound in the right side of the chest, the flagellations,'' he
said.
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- He disagreed with suggestions the DNA
could be used to clone Jesus in the style of Dolly the sheep, saying that
the samples were too degraded.
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- Professor Michael Tite of Oxford University,
one of the scientists who carried out the 1988 carbon dating tests, was
skeptical of the new book's claims. "Nobody has yet provided me with
convincing evidence that our carbon dating is incorrect,'' he said.
-
- "The amount of coating needed to
skew the dating that much would be large, though the possibility cannot
be ruled out. But I still believe the shroud is medieval.''
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- _____________
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- Shroud of Turin Sparks New Controversy
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- Discovery Online Discovery News Brief
www.discovery.com 11-16-98
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- A University of Texas scientist claims
he's isolated DNA from the blood of Jesus on the Shroud of Turin, thrusting
the remnant into another round of controversy.
-
- Leoncio Garza-Valdes, a former professor
of microbiology, is the latest to question the scientific consensus that
the shroud, which many believe was used to wrap the body of Jesus after
the crucifixion, is a medieval forgery, according to Sunday's Electro nic
Telegraph.
-
- In his book, "The DNA of God?,"
to be released next month, Garza-Valdes claims tests carried out by colleagues
at the University of Texas show that the "red" areas on the cloth
are ancient blood stains of a group consistent with a Jewish male -- not
pait , as some experts have claimed.
-
- In addition, fragments of oak, a common
tree in Jerusalem, were found, which, he believes, could have come from
the cross.
-
- But skeptics say he has yet to provide
convincing evidence that the shroud is not a fake, the Telegraph says.
-
- Garza-Valdes is already known for challenging
1988 carbon dating tests that put the date of the cloth between 1260 and
1390.
-
- Garza-Valdes and Prof. Stephen Mattingly,
another microbiologist at the university, say a barely visible living coating
of bacteria and fungi coat the cloth. This, the scientists believe, could
have skewed the carbon dating.
-
- Prof. Michael Tite of Oxford University,
one of the scientists who carried out the 1988 carbon dating tests, tells
the Telegraph, "The amount of coating needed to skew the dating that
much would be large, though the possibility cannot be ruled out. But I
still believe the shroud is medieval."
-
- Garza-Valdes' book details the experiments
that show the reddish stains on the shroud are of ancient blood containing
XY chromosomes, placing it as human and male. The tests were headed by
Victor Tryon, director of the Center for Advanced DNA Technology at the
University of Texas Health Science Center.
-
- Further analysis of the stains revealed
an AB blood type, common among Jewish people. Garza-Valdes also says the
placing of the blood traces strongly indicated that the body was that of
Jesus.
-
- "Not many people in the first century
suffered all those lesions, the crucifixion wounds, the crown of thorns,
the spear wound in the right side of the chest, the flagellations,"
he says.
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