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Turin Shroud On Display
The Pope has declared that the Shroud of Turin will go on public display again in 2010.
The fabric, which some believe was the burial cloth of Christ, last went on public display in 1998; there was a further "millennium viewing" in 2000. In 1997, the chapel in Turin where the shroud was usually displayed (up to recently, a once-in-a-century event) was severely damaged in a fire. A fireman risked his life dragging the shroud from the burning building.
The shroud is kept rolled up in a silver box in Turin. The Pope, Benedict XVI, is traditionally the "owner" or "keeper" of the shroud. Benedict said that he hoped to live long enough to visit the relic in two years.
The 4.4 by 1.2 meters (14.5 by 3.9 feet) linen cloth bears the image of a crucified man. Tests on the fabric in 1988 suggested it dated from the 13th century, but more recently others have suggested that the previous tests may have been flawed. One report said that it originated in Jerusalem before the 8th century.
Just how long before is the big question. Academics and students of the shroud are calling for newer techniques to be applied to solve the mystery of the cloth, but because of its fragility and great antiquity, successive Popes have been willing to grant only a few fabric threads for examination at a time.
