Shroud of Turin ‘doesn’t present face of Jesus’ – actually he by no means touched it says research

The Shroud of Turin does not show the face of Jesus Christ and probably was never even touched by him, according to a new report.

Experts say there is no way the image left on the fabric could have come from a human body and have even said it is doubtful Jesus would even have come into contact with it.

It has long been claimed that the artefact was used to wrap Christ’s corpse after his crucifixion.

But a new scientific study made the bombshell claim that it was all a myth and its authors say they can debunked the famous tale once and for all.

The new study was carried out using a virtual simulation and 3D imagery.

It found that the impression on the fabric could not have been made by a three-dimensional human body, but was perhaps from a bas-relief – a shallow carving.

Author of the study Cicero Moraes, used a virtual fabric to carry out his tests and said that when laid flat it showed “a distorted and significantly more robust image” than that on the shroud, as a result of the change from 3D to 2D.”

He said the findings were easy to explain and added: “The explanation of the differences is very simple.

“When you wrap a 3D object with a fabric, and that object leaves a pattern like blood stains, these stains generate a more robust and more deformed structure in relation to the source.

“So, roughly speaking, what we see as a result of printing stains from a human body would be a more swollen and distorted version of it, not an image that looks like a photocopy.

“A bas-relief, however, wouldn’t cause the image to deform, resulting in a figure that resembles a photocopy of the body.”

Mr Moraes, a Brazilian graphics expert, is well known for forensically rebuilding the faces of historic figures from their skulls.

He said he doubts whether the shroud ever touched the body of Jesus.

“I think the possibility of this having happened is very remote,” he said. “People generally fall into two camps in the debates.

“On one side are those who think it is an authentic shroud of Jesus Christ, and on the other, those who think it is a forgery.

“But I am inclined towards another approach: that it is in fact a work of Christian art, which managed to convey its intended message very successfully.”