Customer Reviews

The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin: New Scientific Evidence

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Are you interested in mysteries? Does exploring the past as it pertains to the historical figure of Jesus intrigue you? Are you a skeptic who tends to want scientific evidence of things you don't understand? If so, then you should read this book. "The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin" is one of the most informative and thought-provoking books I have read. I live in the same general region of John Iannone, the author of this book, and I recently had the unique opportunity to attend one of his lectures of the shroud and speak with him in person. Much of what Mr. Iannone covers in his seminars is also covered in great detail in this book. The book follows the historical journey of the Shroud of Turin (the purported burial cloth of Jesus) from its origins in the Middle East to Europe in the middle ages and, finally, to its place in modern times. The book describes in a careful, organized way the many scientific tests and examinations to which the cloth has been subjected, both in decades past and in recent times. It includes timelines, maps, and many astounding, close-up photographs of the shroud. The details are superb. The book is written in a very matter-of-fact, easy to read manner; it is definitely NOT boring! (No dried-up dissertations here!) Whether you believe or disbelieve in the veracity of the Shroud of Turin, this book poses a very fascinating look at an icon from centuries past.

I have read a number of scientific books on the Shroud, including Verdict on the Shroud by Habermas and Stevenson, Report on the Shroud of Turin by Joseph Heller, and most of Ian Wilson's books. Iannone's book is DEFINITELY one to buy, whether you have studied the Shroud in detail or just want to find out about it. He covers a lot of the latest discoveries, such as HOW the 1988 radiocarbon datings were flawed, the discovery of flower imprints and coin images from 29-31 A.D., INCLUDING A COIN WITH THE NAME CAESAR MISSPELLED, and a lot more of the history of the Shroud. This and Ian Wilson's The Blood and the Shroud are among the best in recent years. I highly recommend both!

The information contained in the book can be classified into two types: scientific and historical. The scientific evidence is well presented, easily understood by the lay person, and very, very convincing. The author's story of how the shroud came to be in Turin, however, is rife with raw speculation and tenuous connections, the veracity of which I am unable to judge. The good news is that you can believe that the Shroud is the true burial cloth of Jesus Christ based entirely on the scientific evidence!

The editing leaves a bit to be desired. There are endless repetitions of much of the information, almost as if the various sections of the book were written by different authors who did not read each other's work.

All in all, however, the book was well worth reading, especially for those of us who are new to the details of this wonderful, miraculous story.

The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin: New Scientific Evidence, by John C. Iannone. Alba House, New York, 1998. From the scientific evidence of pollen, mites, flowers and Roman coins, to ancient Jewish burial practices, the astonishing tale of the Image of Edessa, Knights Templar, the Shroud "Mafia" and the Great Fire of 1532, follow the oddessy of the fabled Shroud of Turin and its miraculous reappearance in modern times. A truly thrilling read!

To anyone interested on the historical and scientifical facts surrounding the life of Jesus Christ, this will be fascinating.

The speaker made a presentation on May 10 2008 about the shroud of Turin at the Festival of Faith of Orlando diocese. The presentation was a summary of his research, which he presents on the book.
The following is a description of the talk as it appeared at the Festival of Faith catalogues. The description gives a good overview of the many aspects of the shroud he has made research on.

10:00 a.m. - John Iannone
TITLE: The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin: New Scientific Evidence
DESCRIPTION: No cloth in history from anywhere in the world has been so studied as the Holy Shroud of Turin. Nor has any cloth so caught the fascination and reverence of the world. And still it remains a mystery. Is the Shroud the ancient burial cloth of Jesus providing in its linen fabric the story of His death and Resurrection? Is it a clever medieval hoax of Leonardo da Vinci? What do modern DNA tests reveal regarding the apparent blood stains on the Cloth? Are there images of flowers and pollens on the cloth that trace its history? How were the mysterious images created? Can modern forensic pathologists identify the body of a crucified human supporting the words of the New Testament and weapons and wounds used by Romans soldiers on Jesus? These are just a few of the many intriguing questions discussed with slides in this lecture. The story of the Shroud reads like a mystery novel that will intrigue you and increase your sense of awe and wonder as you contemplate the message of this lecture.
BIO: John Iannone is a Catholic writer, lecturer and filmmaker now living in Kissimmee. Having earned a Masters in Religious Studies at the Catholic University in Washington, he did additional studies at Fordham Theological and Union Theological Seminary in New York. He has been a student of the Holy Shroud of Turin since 1978 and published a book through the Paulist Fathers in New York in 1998 called "The Mystery of the Shroud of Turin: New Scientific Evidence." He was invited to attend the viewing of the Holy Shroud in Turin in 1998. Upon his return, he lectured extensively to over 20,000 people at 40 Catholic Churches and 70 Protestant churches of all denominations in Florida and New York. Mr. Iannone did a program for the Eternal Word Television Network on the Holy Shroud and another for LATV Public Television in New Orleans. His latest book on the Holy Shroud "The Image and The Rose" has just been published.

The latest information on the Shroud and questions about its authenticity as the burial cloth of Jesus by an author who is convinced it is. Full of solid research and a good discussion of the controversy surrounding the carbon testing. It's a quick read with lots of good information.

I have read many books and given numerous lectures on the Shroud of Turin over the last 20 years. Most of the recent studies suggest that the image on the Shroud was caused by some heat/light source resulting in a mild scorch to the superficial-most fibers of the cloth (and there is plenty of evidence for this). In the last chapter, John C Iannone Summarizes the various possibilities. He, as well as Ian Wilson, Rodney Hoare, Stevenson & Habermas all note the striking correlation between the historical/Gospel evidence and the physical evidence on the Shroud. None of them, however, mention the Gospel evidence of how the image was formed! Check out Mt. 28:3:"--the angel of the Lord--resembled a FLASH OF LIGHTNING--". If the angel of the Lord could do this,why not the Son of God? Check out Mk.9:2, Lk. 9:29 &Mt. 17:2, during the Transfiguration!! John C. Iannone wrote an excellent book with the latest information on the subject. I highly recommend it. It will occupy a prominent place in my library.

This is an incredibly well-written analysis of the most recent evidence and research on the Shroud of Turin. In my mind, there is no better authority on the Shroud today than Mr. Iannone.

His logical presentation of the facts will lead any reasonable person to the truth about the Shroud. Both non-Christians and Christians alike must read this book. Mr. Iannone's work, like the Shroud itself, will not find fancy with those uninterested in the truth.

After hearing the author on a radio program, I immediately got my hands on this book. I wanted to love it. It tells a compelling story, but the writing and editing are so awful that it was a major distraction from the theme, and made it much harder to read than it should have been.

Positive elements: It's a pretty quick read, and the parts of the book dealing with forensic evidence actually move along almost like a thriller. The examination of dust, pollen, linen, and means and effects of crucifixion are pretty well presented.

Negative elements: The writing style is frustratingly repetitive. Quite often a sentence is repeated, even without significant variation of vocabulary or word order. Sometimes even whole paragraphs are repeated for no real purpose other than to fill up pages. For example, on page 101 is a paragraph labeled "Legend of King Abgar," without attribution. The very next section, "Eusebius the Historian," starts off with basically the same paragraph, only this time attributed to Eusebius. An example of sloppy editing is found on page 180, where the last paragraph in the section "The Rise and Fall of the Iron-Oxide Theory" has nothing to do with iron oxide, and obviously belongs as a conclusion to the previous section, "Is the Shroud a Painting?" These problems of writing style are much more evident in the sections dealing with the history of the shroud, perhaps where the author felt on less sure ground.

For some reason, the author then returns to scientific evidence to discuss the infamous carbon-14 tests of 1988. Here the confidence level picks up again. Although a careful examination might shake that confidence: On page 160 is the section "Carbon-14 -- What is it?" where we read that C-12 and C-13 are "stable atoms, that is, atoms likely to hold on to their electrons." Radioactive stability has nothing to do with electron affinity, but with the likelihood of the atomic nucleus (where there are no electrons) holding together. It is neutrons that distinguish isotopes, not electrons.

On a final technical note, the author points out that the blood type on the shroud is AB. According to sources, this blood type did not exist until about 700 AD. Also, according to Barrie Schwortz of the original STURP research team, as blood ages, its enzymes decay such that eventually ALL stains test as group AB. In other words, just because the blood on the shroud tests AB, that's no indication that Jesus' type was AB. Iannone probably should have known this.

Overall, it's an enjoyable book with a compelling argument. Iannone fairly points out dissenting arguments. It just could have been better written.

I repeat, do not buy or read this book. Although I believe the shroud is real, this author writes in a confused manor. He adds nothing of his own to the story and constantly repeats others research over and over and over and over and over. Each chapter is a re-hash of the last. Each thought process is a mind numbing repeat of the same thought mentioned not 6 pages ago. When he does stumble on a good idea, he drops it like a hot fire poker and jumps back to his insane repeating of the same dogma over and over and over.

Buy someone else's book and read it. Make up a story yourself and tell it to yourself. Go see the movie A Boy and his Dog. Vote Democratic, do anything, do nothing, but don't buy this book.