The face of Leonardo found on the Turin Shroud Jul 01, 2009

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Lynn Picknett, an amateur historian, together with artist Lillian Schwartz, have put forward a hypothesis that the Turin Shroud was faked by Leonardo Da Vinci, and the “photograph” obtained by XV Century methods is that of the author of Jaconda. A documentary film on this topic will be shown on British Channel Five on Wednesday night, on the 1st of July. A short synopsis of the facts was given by Picknett and Schwartz to the Daily Telegraph. The authors of the hypothesis maintain that Da Vinci managed to depict his face on the material of the shroud using silver sulfate and a dark room used as camera-obscura. The similarity between the face depicted on the shroud and the self portrait of Da Vinci was discovered by Lillian Schwartz, who made a sensation in 1980 by noting the similarity of Leonardo and Mona Lisa.

According to the creators of the film “The Da Vinci Shroud - Revealed”, Da Vinci was supposed to fake the Shroud so that the new “relic” could take the place of the old one, which was also a fake. In 1435 it was purchased by the influential Savoy dynasty, and for half a century the shroud disappeared. When it appeared again for all the believer to see, it was the work of Da Vinci. The Daily Telegraph published the commentary of one of professor John Jackson, from the Colorado Center for the study of the Turin Shroud, who opposes the Picknett and Schwartz theory. He notes that the image of the shroud is first seen on XIV Century medallion and there is no evidence supporting a connection of Da Vinci to the shroud.

In 1988 the Turin shroud was dated to 1260-1390 using radiocarbon dating analysis. This date is debated by both the supporters and the opponents of the authenticity of the Turin Shroud: the shroud is so soiled that it could be much older as well as much younger. Vatican officially does not recognize the shroud as authentic, however considers it to be an important reminder of the passions of Christ. In 2010 the shroud will be shown to the public once again.