John 20 verses six and seven:
6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen.
The Shroud of Turin is the linen cloth people believe covered the body of Jesus in the tomb. The Sudarium of Oviedo is the cloth that tradition claims is the cloth used to cover and clean the face of Jesus after the crucifixion.
The Sudarium of Oviedo has a history tracing back to the seventh century when it left Palestine to protect it from the ravages of war. Late in the eighth century, King Alfonso II had a special chapel built for the chest, that was later incorporated into a cathedral. The chest was opened in 1075 in front of King Alfonso VI, his sister, and El Cid. An inventory of the chest lists the Sudarium of Oviedo among the contents. The Sudarium has been kept in the cathedral at Oviedo ever since.
The historical records for the Shroud of Turin are vague before 1390 when it is undoubtedly in Lirey, France. The history of the shroud from the 15th century to the present is well documented.
There is blood on the Sudarium, but no image. DNA tests on the Sudarium and the Shroud show the blood on both is the rare blood type A/B. Some comparisons made in the past seem to show that the nose on both relics is the same size and that blood patterns match. A small stain visible on the Sudarium wasn't noticed or found on the Shroud until researchers comparing the two looked for it.
An article published in April about research sponsored by the Spanish Center of Sindonology concluded the Shroud and the Sudarium both covered the same person. Using forensics and geometry, Dr. Juan Manuel Miñarro, a professor at the University of Seville, found that number of correlations between the blood on the two relics that “far exceeds the minimum number of proofs or significant points required by most judicial systems around the world to identify a person, which is between eight and 12, while our study has demonstrated more than 20.”
So, are there any recent developments in regards to the identity of the Shroud of Tourin? The answer is maybe, there is more evidence that two historical artifacts connected to the crucifixion really covered the same man. But no new proof that the man was Jesus.
Contact us for information on the Shroud and our sculptures created from the image on the Shroud.