A recent scholarly exchange has renewed debate over the origins of the Shroud of Turin, after specialists published a detailed rebuttal challenging claims that the sacred cloth was produced through medieval artistic techniques.
According to Vatican News, the academic journal Archaeometry has published a response by researchers Tristan Casabianca, Emanuela Marinelli, and Alessandro Piana addressing a 2024 article by Brazilian researcher Cicero Moraes. Moraes had argued that the Shroud’s image could have been created in the Middle Ages using a bas-relief method, based on digital modeling.
The new rebuttal disputes that conclusion on multiple scientific grounds. The authors state that Moraes’s work suffers from “ambiguous objectives, methodological flaws, and faulty reasoning,” and argue that his digital reconstruction fails to reflect the actual physical and chemical characteristics of the Shroud.
A Lenten Message from Sister Catherine – Please Watch
Among the most serious concerns raised is the anatomical accuracy of the model used in the study. The rebuttal notes that the reconstruction reproduces only the frontal image, reverses right and left in the hands and feet, and selects a height of 180 centimeters, which the authors say falls outside the generally accepted range. The model was also simulated on cotton rather than linen, despite the Shroud being made of linen.
The researchers further emphasize that Moraes’s analysis overlooks what they describe as the Shroud’s most distinctive features, including the “extreme superficiality of the image,” measured at roughly “one-fifth of a thousandth of a millimeter,” as well as repeated scientific confirmations of the presence of blood. According to the rebuttal, these characteristics are incompatible with known medieval artistic practices.
Concerns about the study were not limited to the scientific community. Cardinal Roberto Repole, Archbishop of Turin and Custodian of the Shroud, previously expressed alarm over what he called “the superficiality of certain conclusions, which often do not hold up to a closer examination of the work presented,” according to Vatican News.
The rebuttal also challenges the historical framework used to support the medieval forgery theory. The authors argue that Moraes relies on disconnected time periods and artistic traditions to explain how such an image could have been conceived and executed. They describe this approach as a “fallacy of composition,” warning that it would undermine established principles of art history if broadly applied.
Even the historical sources cited by Moraes raise questions about his conclusions. The rebuttal points out that one of the primary historians he references, William S. A. Dale, believed the image could not have originated in 14th-century France and instead suggested a Byzantine context centuries earlier.
In a reply also published by Archaeometry, Moraes maintains his position, stating that his work was intended to be “strictly methodological,” focusing on image deformation rather than historical reconstruction. However, the rebuttal counters that methodological analysis cannot be separated from the material and historical realities of the artifact itself.
According to Vatican News, the latest exchange highlights the need for caution when applying modern digital tools to an object as singular as the Shroud. While technology can assist research, the article concludes that claims about the Shroud’s origin require “particular rigor, both methodologically and historically,” especially given its enduring religious and scientific significance.
For Catholics, the debate serves as a reminder that the Shroud of Turin continues to provoke serious inquiry more than a century after its first photograph, standing at the crossroads of faith, science, and history.
Your support brings the truth to the world.
Catholic Online News exists because of donors like you. We are 100% funded by people who believe the world deserves real, uncensored news rooted in faith and truth — not corporate agendas. Your gift ensures millions can continue to access the news they can trust — stories that defend life, faith, family, and freedom.
When truth is silenced, your support speaks louder.
