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April 10 (or 16), 1349:
The Hundred Year War had
been raging between France and England for over eleven years and the
Black Death had just finished ravaging most of Europe when Geoffrey
de Charny, a French knight, writes to Pope Clement VI reporting his
intention to build a church at Lirey, France. It is said he builds
St. Mary of Lirey church to honor the Holy Trinity who answered his
prayers for a miraculous escape while a prisoner of the English. He
is also already in possession of the Shroud, which some believe he
acquired in Constantinople.
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1355: According to the "D'Arcis Memorandum",
written more than thirty years later, the first known expositions of
the Shroud are held in Lirey at around this time. Large crowds of
pilgrims are attracted and special souvenir medallions are struck. A
unique surviving specimen can still be found today at the Cluny
Museum in Paris. Reportedly, Bishop Henri refused to believe the
Shroud could be genuine and ordered the expositions halted. The
Shroud was then hidden away.
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September 19, 1356: Geoffrey de Charny is killed
by the English at the Battle of Poitiers, during a last stand in
which he valiantly defends his king. Within a month his widow,
Jeanne de Vergy, appeals to the Regent of France to pass the
financial grants, formerly made to Geoffrey, on to his son, Geoffrey
II. This is approved a month later. The Shroud remains in the de
Charny family's possession.
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August 4, 1389: A letter signed by King Charles VI
of France orders the bailiff of Troyes to seize the Shroud at Lirey
and deposit it in another of Troyes' churches pending his further
decision about its disposition.
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August 15, 1389: The bailiff of Troyes reports
that on his going to the Lirey church, the dean protested that he
did not have the key to the treasury where the Shroud was kept.
After a prolonged argument, the bailiff seals the treasury's doors
so that the Shroud cannot be spirited away.
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September 5, 1389: The king's First Sergeant
reports to the bailiff of Troyes that he has informed the dean and
canons of the Lirey church that "the cloth was now verbally put into
the hands of our lord the king. The decision has also been conveyed
to a squire of the de Charny household for conveyance to his
master".
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November (?) 1389: Bishop Pierre d'Arcis of Troyes
appeals to anti-pope Clement VII at Avignon concerning the
exhibiting of the Shroud at Lirey. He describes the cloth as bearing
the double imprint of a crucified man and that it is being claimed
as the true Shroud in which Jesus' body was wrapped, attracting
crowds of pilgrims.
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January 6, 1390: Clement VII writes to Bishop
d'Arcis, ordering him to keep silent on the Shroud, under threat of
excommunication. On the same date Clement writes a letter to
Geoffrey II de Charny apparently restating the conditions under
which expositions could be allowed. That day he also writes to other
relevant individuals, asking them to ensure that his orders are
obeyed.
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June 1390: A Papal bull grants new indulgences to
those who visit St. Mary of Lirey and its relics.
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May 22, 1398: Death of Geoffrey II de Charny. He
is buried at the Abbey of Froidmont, near Beauvais, his tomb
decorated with his effigy as a knight in armour.
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1400: Geoffrey II de Charny's daughter Margaret
marries Jean de Baufremont.
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June 1418: The widowed Margaret de Charny marries
Humbert of Villersexel, Count de la Roche, Lord of St.Hippolyte sur
Doubs.
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July 6, 1418: Due to danger from marauding bands,
the Lirey canons hand over the Shroud to Humbert for safe-keeping.
He keeps it in his castle of Montfort near Montbard. Later it is
kept at St.Hippolyte sur Doubs, in the chapel called des Buessarts.
According to seventeenth century chroniclers annual expositions of
the Shroud are held at this time in a meadow on the banks of the
river Doubs called the Pré du Seigneur.
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1438: Death of Humbert de la Roche, husband of
Margaret de Charny
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May 8, 1443: Dean and canons of Lirey petition
Margaret de Charny to return the Shroud to them.
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May 9, 1443: Parlement of Dole gives judgment on
case of Margaret de Charny v. the Lirey canons.
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July 18, 1447: The Court of Besançon gives
judgment on the case of Margaret de Charny v. the Lirey canons.
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1448/9: Archives of Mons record Margaret de Charny
(as Mme de la Roche) with in her care 'what is called the Holy
Shroud of Our Lord' entering Mons and ordering French wine there.
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1449: Belgian chronicler Cornelius Zantiflet
records Margaret de Charny exhibiting the Shroud at Liege.
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September 13, 1452: Margaret de Charny shows the
Shroud a Germnolles (near Macon) in a public exposition at the
Castle.
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March 22, 1453: Margaret de Charny, at Geneva,
receives from Duke Louis I of Savoy the castle of Varambon and
revenues of the estate of Miribel near Lyon for 'valuable services'.
Those services are thought to have been the bequest of the Shroud.
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1457: Margaret de Charny is threatened with
excommunication if she does not return the Shroud to the Lirey
canons. On 30 May the letter of excommunication is sent.
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1459: Margaret de Charny's half-brother Charles de
Noyers negotiates compensation to the Lirey canons for their loss of
the Shroud, which they specifically recognize they will not now
recover. The excommunication is lifted.
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October 7, 1460: Margaret de Charny dies, leaving
her Lirey lands to her cousin and godson Antoine-Guerry des Essars.
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February 6, 1464: By an accord drawn up in Paris,
Duke Louis I of Savoy agrees to pay the Lirey canons an annual rent,
to be drawn from the revenues of the castle of Gaillard, near
Geneva, as compensation for their loss of the Shroud. (This is the
first surviving document to record that the Shroud has become Savoy
property) The accord specifically notes that the Shroud had been
given to the church of Lirey by Geoffrey de Charny, lord of Savoisy
and Lirey, and that it had then been transferred to Duke Louis by
Margaret de Charny.
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1465: Duke Louis I dies at Lyon. Just over two
decades later a chronicle of Savoy will record his acquisition of
the Shroud as his greatest achievement. He is succeeded by his son
Duke Amadeus IX an inactive but devout prince who has a Cordelier as
preceptor and who shares with his wife Duchess Yolande of France a
particular devotion to the Shroud. Amaedeus is said in 1502 to have
instituted the cult of the Shroud in the Sainte Chapelle at Chambéry.
Yolande founds Chambéry's Poor Clares convent, whose sisters, in a
few decades time, will repair the Shroud after the chapel fire.
However, Amadeus neglects to honor the terms of Duke Louis's
agreement to pay an annual rent to the Lirey canons.
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April 21, 1467: Pope Paul II elevates status of
the Chambéry chapel to a co llegiate church.
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1471: Beginning of second phase of construction of
the Sainte Chapelle at Chambéry.
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September 20, 1471: Shroud transferred from
Chambéry to Vercelli.
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1472: Death of Duke Amadeus IX.
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1472: Philibert I ('The Hunter') of Savoy succeeds
his father as Duke at the age of six, although his mother, dowager
duchess Yolande assumes the role of regent during his minority.
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May 14, 1473: Two delegates from the canons of
Lirey press regent Yolande for eight years arrears in the promised
rent, or, in place of this, the return of the Shroud to them.
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July 2, 1473: Shroud transferred from Vercelli to
Turin.
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October 5, 1473: Shroud transferred from Turin to
Ivrea.
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July 18, 1474: Shroud transferred from Ivrea to
Moncalieri.
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August 25, 1474: Shroud transferred from
Moncalieri to Ivrea.
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October 5, 1475: Shroud transferred across the
Alps from Ivrea back to Chambéry.
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1477-8: Shroud at Susa-Avigliano-Rivoli.
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March 20, 1478 (Good Friday): Shroud exhibited at
Pinerolo.
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1482: Warrant on behalf of the Lirey canons that
the dowager Duchess of Savoy should observe agreement made by her
late husband. About this same time Leonardo da Vinci leaves Florence
to serve as court painter and military engineer at the court of
Ludovico Sforza (Il Moro), Duke of Milan. He will stay in Milan for
the next 18 years.
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June 6, 1483: Jean Renguis and Georges Carrelet,
respectively chaplain and sacristan of the Sainte Chapelle at
Chambéry, draw up an inventory in which the Shroud is described as
"enveloped in a red silk drape, and kept in a case covered with
crimson velours, decorated with silver-gilt nails, and locked with a
golden key."
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1485: The Shroud is regularly carried around with
the Savoys as their Court journeys from castle to castle.
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1488 Easter Sunday: Shroud exhibited at Savigliano.
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1494 Good Friday: Dowager Duchess Bianca of Savoy
exhibits the Shroud at Vercelli in the presence of Rupis, secretary
to the Duke of Mantua. Leonardo begins painting of the Last Supper
in Milan, on which he will work for two years.
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1498: King Louis initates extensive remodelling of
the Sainte Chapelle in Paris. An inventory detailing the Shroud when
at Turin in this same year describes its case as "a coffer covered
with crimson velours, with silver gilt roses, and the sides silver
and the Holy Shroud inside wrapped in a cloth of red silk."
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June 11, 1502: At the behest of Duchess of Savoy
Marguerite of Austria, the Shroud is no longer moved around with the
Savoys during their travels, but given a permanent home in the Royal
Chapel of Chambéry Castle. Duke Philibert, Duchess Marguerite,
Francois of Luxembourg, viscount of Martigues, husband of Louise of
Savoy (grand-daughter of Duke Louis), together with nearly all the
local clergy, attend the ceremony of translation during which
Laurent Alamand, bishop of Grenoble, solemnly carries the Shroud in
its silver-gilt case from Chambéry's Franciscan church to the
Sainte-Chapelle. The Shroud is displayed on the Chapel's high altar,
then entrusted to the care of archdeacon Jacques Veyron and the
canons of the Chapel, who replace it in its case and deposit it
behind the high altar, in a special cavity hollowed out of the wall.
In this cavity it is secured by an iron grille with four locks, each
opened by separate keys, two of which are held by the Duke. Pope
Sixtus IV confers on the Chambéry chapel the title Sainte Chapelle.
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April 14, 1503 Good Friday: Exposition of the
Shroud at Bourg-en-Bresse for Archduke Philip the Handsome,
grand-master of Flanders, on his return from a journey to Spain. The
Shroud, which has been specially brought from Chambéry, with great
ceremony, by Duke Philibert of Savoy and Duchess Marguerite, is
exposed on an altar in one of the great halls of the Duke's palace.
Savoy courtier Antoine de Lalaing records of the events of that day:
"The day of the great and holy Friday, the Passion was preached in
Monsignor's chapel by his confessor, the duke and duchess attending.
Then they went with great devotion to the market halls of the town,
where a great number of people heard the Passion preached by a
Cordeilier. After that three bishops showd to the public the Holy
Shroud of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and after the service it was shown
in Monsignor's chapel." Lalaing adds that the Shroud's authenticity
has been confirmed by its having been tried by fire, boiled in oil,
laundered many times 'but it was not possible to efface or remove
the imprint and image.'
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1509: New casket/reliquary for the Shroud is
created in silver by Flemish artist Lievin van Latham, having been
commissioned by Marguerite of Austria at a cost of more than 12,000
gold ecus. The Shroud's installation in this new casket takes place
on 10 August, before the Sainte- Chapelle's grand altar, in the
presence of the presidents of the Council of Savoy and other
dignitaries. In return for the gift of the casket, the Sainte
Chapelle chapter are required to say a daily Mass for Marguerite and
her dead husband Philibert.
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1511: Private exposition for Anne of Brittany,
Queen of France, and for Francesco of Aragon.
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1513: Death at Chambéry of Marguerite's
mother-in-law dowager duchess Claude. She is buried behind the high
altar of the Sainte Chapelle, Chambéry, immediately facing the
repository containing the Shroud.
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1516: King Francis I of France journeys from Lyon
to Chambéry to venerate the Shroud after his victory at Marignan.
Copy of Shroud preserved in the Church of St.Gommaire at Lierre is
dated to this year.
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1518: Shroud exhibited from castle walls at
Chambéry in honour of the Cardinal of Aragon.
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1521: Duke Charles III marries Beatrice, daughter
of King Emanuel of Portugal in this year, and they make a pilgrimage
from Vercelli to Chambéry to venerate the Shroud. Shroud exhibited
at Chambéry for benefit of Dom Edme, abbot of Clairvaux. Carried by
three bishops, it is shown on the castle walls, and then for
privileged observers hung over the high altar of the Sainte Chapelle,
Chambéry.
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1530: Death of Marguerite of Austria.
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December 4, 1532: Fire breaks out in the Sainte
Chapelle, Chambéry, seriously damaging all its furnishings and
fittings. Because the Shroud is protected by four locks, Canon
Philibert Lambert and two Franciscans summon the help of a
blacksmith to prise open the grille. By the time they succeed,
Marguerite of Austria's Shroud casket/reliquary as made to her
orders by Lievin van Latham has become melted beyond repair by the
heat. But the Shroud folded inside is preserved bar being scorched
and holed by a drop of molten silver that fell on one corner.
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April 16, 1534: Chambéry's Poor Clare nuns repair
the Shroud, sewing it onto a backing cloth (the Holland cloth), and
sewing patches over the unsightliest of the damage. These repairs
are completed on 2 May. Covered in cloth of gold, the Shroud is
returned to the Savoys' castle in Chambéry.
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1535: Savoy is invaded by French troops. Charles
III and his family abandon Chambéry. The Shroud is taken to
Piedmont, passing through the Lanzo valley.
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May 4, 1535: The Shroud is exhibited in Turin.
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May 7, 1536: Ths Shroud is exhibited in Milan.
Indicative of the rumours that it had been destroyed in the fire,
Rabelais' Gargantua published in France in this year includes a
scene in which soldiers sacking a monastery vineyard call upon
various saints and relics when attacked with a processional cross by
one 'Frere Jean':. 'Some made a vow to St.James, others to the Holy
Shroud of Chambéry, but it caught fire three months later so that
not a single scrap could be saved...'
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1537: The Shroud is taken for safety to Vercelli
because of French invasions.
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March 29, 1537: The Shroud is exhibited from the
tower of Bellanda, Nice.
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1540: The Shroud at Aosta.
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1541: The Shroud is once again at Vercelli, where
it will stay for the next twenty years.
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Early June 1561: The Shroud is brought back to
Chambéry and deposited in the Church of St.Mary the Egyptian, in the
Franciscan convent.
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August 15 and 17, 1561: Showings of the Shroud
from the walls of the city and in the piazza of the castello.
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1578: The saintly Cardinal Charles Borromeo
(1538-1584) decides to journey on foot from Milan to Chambery to
give thanks to the Shroud following release of Milan from the
plague. To save Borromeo the rigours of a journey across the Alps
Duke Emanuel Philibert orders the cloth to be brought from Chambery.
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September 14, 1578: The Shroud arrives in Turin,
heralded by a gun salute from the local artillery.
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Friday, October 10, 1578: Private showing of the Shroud for
Charles Borromeo and his companions. Upon removal of its black silk
coverlet, the cloth is shown stretched out on a large table.
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Sunday, October 12, 1578: The Shroud is carried in
procession from the Cathedral to the Piazza del Castello where, with
Borromeo, Vercelli's cardinal, the archbishops of Turin and Savoy,
and six other bishops officiating, it is shown on a large platform
before a crowd estimated at forty thousand.
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October 14, 1578: After forty hours of devotions,
a second procession brings the Shroud to the piazza for a second
showing.
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October 15, 1578:
Second private showing of the
Shroud for the close circle of Charles Borromeo. Cusano describes
the Shroud as 'testimony to its own authenticity'.
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June 13, 14 & 15, 1582: Showings of the Shroud on
the occasion of a fresh pilgrimage by Cardinal Charles Boromeo to
Turin, with Cardinal Gabriel Paleotto as another of the officiants.
These showings are recorded on a rare print preserved in the Ufficio
Manoscritti e Rari of Turin's Biblioteca Civica.
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May 4, 1604: Showing of the Shroud in the presence
of Duke Charles Emanuel I and his Court.
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February 14, 1606: Private showing of the Shroud
to Silvestro da Assisi-Bini, father general of the Capuchin order,
an offshoot of the Franciscans.
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May 9, 1606: Public showing. The crowd swelled by
40,000 foreigners who had come to Turin to see the Shroud.
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1608: The thirtieth anniversary of the Shroud's
arrival in Turin. A print issued to mark the occasion is preserved
in London's British Museum.
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1620: Shroud shown in the castle piazza to mark
the marriage of Duke Vict or Amadeus with Christine of France.
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June 16, 1633: Public showing of the Shroud in the
Castle Piazza, Turin.
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May 4, 1635: Public showing of the Shroud in the
Castle Piazza, Turin
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1638: Private showing of the Shroud at Turin for
St.Jeanne Franeoise de Chantal, founder of the Order of the
Visitation.
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1640: Shroud exhibited as an expression of thanks
for the release of Turin from plague. A painted copy of the Shroud
preserved at the Castillo de Garcimunoz was 'extractum ex originali'
at this time.
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1642: Solemn showing of the Shroud to mark the
conclusion of peace between the princes of Savoy, in the presence of
Christine of France, Duchess of Savoy, her young son Charles Emanuel
II, and the princes Maurice and Thomas of Savoy.
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May 4, 1647: At a public showing this year, held
in the Cathedral, some of the enormous crowd died of suffocation.
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May 16 and 17, 1663: Exposition of the Shroud in
the Cathedral of Turin is delayed from the normal May 4 date to
coincide with the wedding of Duke Carlo Emanuele II of Savoy with
Francesca d'Orleans. The copy of the Shroud preserved in St. Paul's
Church, Rabat, Malta was placed in contact with the Shroud at this
time.
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1665: Showing of the Shroud in the Royal Chapel,
in the presence of Archbishop Michele Beggiano, to mark the marriage
of Duke Charles Emanuel II with Maria de Savoy-Nemours.
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May 14, 1665 (Feast of the Ascension): Shroud is
shown in public before a huge crowd, held up by seven bishops.
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March 24, 1666: Private showing for Duke
Maximilian of Bavaria.
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May 4, 1666: Public showing conducted by the
Archbishop of Turin and four bishops.
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May 4, 1667: Public showing, with ambassador
Morosini of Venice in attendance.
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June 1st, 1694: The Shroud is brought solemnly
into the Guarini Chapel where it has remained almost uninterruptedly
for over three centuries.
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May 4, 1722: Public showing.
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May 4, 1737: Public showing of the Shroud to mark
the royal marriage, commemorated by a print showing a vast crowd in
front of the royal palace, as the Shroud is displayed from a
balcony.
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June 29, 1750: Showing of the Shroud, presided
over by Cardinal Delle Lan ze, to celebrate the marriage of Prince
Victor Amadeus (III) with Maria Antonia of Bourbon, Infanta of
Spain.
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June 16, 1769: Private showing of the Shroud for
Emperor Joseph II of Hapsburg-Lorraine [?]. Shown in the Cathedral
from the balcony of the Royal Chapel for the large crowd gathered in
the Cathedral.
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October 15, 1775: Marriage of Piedmont Prince
Charles Emanuel (IV) with Princess Marie Clotilde of France marked
by showing of the Shroud with same ceremonial used in 1750.
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December 9, 1798: Forced to leave Turin and
withdraw to Sardinia, Charles Emanuel IV (1796-1802), venerates the
Shroud with the rest of the royal family before their departure.
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November 13, 1804: Private showing of the Shroud
for the visit to Turin of Pope Pius VII, virtually a prisoner en
route from Rome to Paris to crown Napoleon, who would be crowned by
none other than the Pope. According to Sanna Solaro '.. The Pope
knelt down to venerate it, then examined it in every part, kissing
it with tender devotion'. Seven cardinals, eight bishops and many
other notables were present.
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May 20, 1814: Solemn showing of the Shroud to mark
the return of the monarchy, in the person of King Victor Emanuel.
This is the first full public showing of the Shroud since 1775.
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May 21, 1815: Pope Pius VII's second presiding
over an exposition of the S hroud, this time marking his return to
Italy after Napoleon's defeat. He personally displays it from the
balcony of the Palazzo Madama. On the Shroud being returned to its
casket the latter is sealed with the papal and royal seals.
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January 4, 1822: Showing of the Shroud to mark the
start of the reign of Charles Felix, following the abdication of his
brother Victor Emanuel I. This is held out first in the Royal
Chapel, in the presence of the royal family, then displayed from the
Chapel balustrade for the benefit of the ordinary populace in the
Cathedral below.
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May 4, 1842: Showing of the Shroud to mark the
marriage of Crown Prince Victor Emanuel (II) with Maria Adelaide,
Archduchess of Austria. Lithographs show the Shroud being exhibited
from a balcony of the Palazzo Madama. The making of a daguerrotype
of the Shroud on this occasion is considered but rejected.
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April 24-27, 1868: During the brief archbishopric
of Alessandro Riccardi dei Conti di Netro, marked by exceptional
pastoral care, a showing of the Shroud is held to mark the marriage
of Prince Umberto with Princess Margaret. Instead of a brief holding
up of the cloth in the cathedral or from a balcony of the Palazzo
Madama as had happened in 1815 and 1842, the Shroud is properly
displayed on a board on the cathedral high altar for four days.
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April 28, 1868: Princess Clotilde of Savoy
(1843-1911), daughter of Victor Emanuel II and wife of Prince
Gerolamo Napoleon, changes the Shroud's former lining cloth of black
silk that had been sewn on by Bl. Sebastian Valfre back in 1694,
substituting for it one of crimson taffeta. An official record of
this, with sample of the former black silk lining, is preserved in
Turin. On this same date the Shroud is 'scrupulosamente' measured by
Monsignor Gastaldi, then bishop of Aluzzo, and later archbishop of
Turin, and found to be 410cm. x 140 cm.
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May 28, 1898: Public exhibition. Secondo Pia, an
Italian amateur photographer, makes the first photograph of the
Shroud of Turin. It ushers in a new era in the Shroud's history, the
era of science.
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1900: Canon Ulysse Chevalier's Etude critique sur
l'origine du Saint Suaire de Lirey-Chambry-Turin is published in
Paris, detailing the d' Arcis memorandum and other mediaeval
documents indicating the Shroud's fraudulence.
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April 21, 1902: (Monday afternoon) Agnostic
anatomy professor Yves Delage presents a paper on the Shroud to the
Academy of Sciences, Paris, arguing for the Shroud's medical and
general scientific convincingness, and stating his opinion that it
genuinely wrapped the body of Christ.
(Evening) Secretary for the physics section of the Academy, Marcelin
Berthelot, inventor of thermo-chemistry, and a militant atheist,
orders Delage to rewrite his paper (for publication in the Comptes
rendus de l' Acadmie des Sciences) so that it treats only on the
vaporography of zinc and makes no allusion to the Shroud or to
Christ.
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April 23, 1902: Paris edition of New York Herald
carries headline, 'Photographs of Christ's Body found by science'.
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April 27, 1902: Paris edition of New York Herald
carries headline, 'Scientists Denounce Turin's Holy Shroud. M.
Leopold Delisle tells Academy of Inscriptions "the claim has not
been proved"'.
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1918: Alarmed by the danger of air raids from the
World War then raging, King Victor Emanuel III orders the Shroud to
be put in a place of safety, on condition that it does not leave the
Royal Palace. A secret underground chamber is specially constructed
two floors below ground level in the south-east side of Turin's
Royal Palace, with not even the contractors told its purpose. On the
floor of this chamber is set a large strongbox with a complex
combination lock. On 6 May the casket of the Shroud is removed from
the Royal Chapel (in which it has lain undisturbed since 1898). It
is wrapped in a thick blanket of asbestos, put in a chest made of
tin plate, hermetically sealed with cold solder, then carried down
to the secret chamber, where it is solemnly locked inside the
strongbox. Prayers are recited, after which the chamber's heavy
entrance doors are locked.
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May 3-24, 1931: Eighth public exhibition on the
occasion of the marriage of Prince Umberto of Piedmont, later to
become Umberto II of Savoy, to Princes Maria Jos of Belgium.
Cardinal Fossati officiates. Two million visitors flock to Turin for
this occasion.
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May 23, 1931: Giuseppe Enrie photographs the
Shroud, confirming Secondo Pia's findings. He takes three pictures
of the Shroud face, one life-size; also a detail of the shoulders
and back, and a seven-fold enlargement of the wound in the wrist.
The photography takes place in the presence of the now seventy-six
year old Secondo Pia and scientists of the French Academy.
In this same year and the following one, Dr. Pierre Barbet conducts
experiments on cadavers to reconstruct the Passion of Jesus as
exhibited in the Shroud's bloodstains and wound marks.
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September 24 to October 15, 1933: At the request
of Pope Pius XI the Shroud is exhibited as part of the celebrations
for Holy Year. The young Salesian priest Fr. Peter Rinaldi, fluent
in French and English, as well as Italian, acts as interpreter. On
the final day, 15 October, the Shroud is held out in daylight on the
steps of the cathedral where Dr. Pierre Barbet views it from a
distance of less than a yard. He writes: 'I saw that all the images
of the wounds were of a color quite different from that of the rest
of the body, and this color was that of dried blood which had sunk
into the stuff. There was, thus, more than the brown stains on the
Shroud reproducing the outline of the corpse. The blood itself had
colored the stuff by direct contact. It is difficult for one
unversed in painting to define the exact color, but the foundation
was red ('mauve carmine' said M. Vignon, who had a fine sense of
color), diluted more or less according to the wounds'.
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1937: Father Edward Wuenschel, a teacher at the
Redemptorist school at Mt. St. Esopus, New York, with a strong
interest in the Shroud, corresponds with Giuseppe Enrie and Paul
Vignon. He and Vignon collaborate on an article for Scientific
American and, later in the year, he founds the American Commission
on Studies of the Holy Shroud. Although it lasts less than two
decades, it gains the distinction of being the first Shroud research
organization in America.
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1938: Publication of Paul Vignon's Le Saint Suaire
de Turin devant la science, l' archologie, l' histoire, l'
iconographie, la logique, by far the most definitive book on the
Shroud published up to that time.
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May 1939: First National Congress on Shroud
Studies held in Turin, with some twenty papers presented, including
Dr. Maser' 'The Verdict of Forensic Medicine upon the Imprints on
the Shroud', and Cecchelli', 'The Dependence of Early Byzantine
Iconography upon the Face on the Turin Shroud'.
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September 1939: The outbreak of World War II
brings European Shroud research to a halt. The Shroud is secretly
taken for safety to the Benedictine Abbey of Montevergine, in the
province of Avellino, northeast of Naples. There are brief stops in
Rome and Naples on its journey.
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September 25, 1939: The Shroud arrives at the
Abbey. Only the Prior, the vicar general and two of the monks are
entrusted with the knowledge of what they are protecting.
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June 1946: The Italian people vote for a republic,
ending the rule of Umberto II of Savoy, the Shroud's legal owner.
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October 28, 1946: The Shroud is exhibited to the
monks of Montevergine prior to its post-war return to Turin. It is
laid on a table in the abbey's reception hall, but strict orders are
given that no one should directly touch it.
The Shroud returns to Turin and its traditional housing in the Royal
Chapel. However, with the fall of the monarchy, and because the
Chapel is part of the now state-owned Royal Palace, the Shroud is
technically on Italian state territory.
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1950: International Sindonological Congress held,
as part of Holy Year celebrations, at the Palazzo della Cancelleria,
Rome. Pope Pius XII sends telegram of benediction.
In Esopus, New York, Father Adam Otterbein, now responsible for the
Shroud work begun by Father Wuenschel, begins distributing pamphlets
of some of his mentor's manuscripts. He decides on "Holy Shroud
Guild" as a simple mailing address.
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October 6, 1951: The Holy Shroud Guild is
canonically erected as a Pious Sodality of the Venerators of the
Most Holy Shroud of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Its founder and first
president is Rev. Adam J. Otterbein. Father Wuenschel, away in Rome,
is named Honorary President. There were also two Councilors, Frs.
Francis Filas and Peter Rinaldi.
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Holy Week 1954: British war hero, Group Captain
Leonard Cheshire VC, having become inspired by the Shroud face while
recuperating from tuberculosis, uses touring bus to tour Britain
with an exhibition of Shroud photographs.
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Easter 1955: Group Captain Cheshire publishes
articles on the Shroud in the British Picture Post and Daily Sketch.
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May 11, 1955: Cheshire receives letter from Mrs.
Veronica Woollam of Gloucester, asking if her ten-year-old daughter
Josephine, crippled with osteomyelitis in the hip and leg, 'could be
blessed with the relic of the Holy Shroud'. Unable to travel by air
because of his lungs, Cheshire takes Josephine and her mother by
train, first to Portugal, for ex-King Umberto's permission, then to
Turin in the hope of her being healed via the Shroud. The Shroud is
taken out of its casket, its seals are broken and Josephine is
allowed to put her hand in beneath the silk covering. But it is not
unrolled. Although there was no immediate change in Josephine's
condition, she later recovers to lead a normal life, though she will
die young.
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December 18, 1959: Formation of the Centro
Internazionale di Sindonologia, the Turin International Center for
the Turin Shroud.
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1960: British Shroud enthusiast Vera Barclay
writes to scientists at the Atomic Energy Research Establishment (AERE),
Harwell, regarding the viability of radiocarbon dating the Shroud.
Dr. J. P. Clarke and P. J. Anderson respond, expressing serious
doubts.
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December 17, 1961: Death of Dr. Pierre Barbet.
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June 16-18 1969: On the orders of Turin's Cardinal
Michele Pellegrino, the Shroud is secretly taken out of its casket
for its state of preservation to be studied by a team of experts.
These examine, photograph and discuss for three days, but do no
direct testing. During this same period, and with the Shroud hung
vertically for the purpose, Giovanni Battista Judica-Cordiglia takes
the first ever Shroud photo in color, also fresh black and white
ones, and ones by Woods light.
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October 1, 1972: Attempt to set fire to the Shroud
on the part of an unknown individual who breaks into the Royal
Chapel after climbing over the Palace roof. The Shroud survives due
to its asbestos protection within the altar shrine.
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October 4, 1973: Dr. Max Frei and others,
assembled in Turin's Hall of the Swiss and with the Shroud
apparently in a frame before them, notarize as authentic the Shroud
photographs taken by Giovanni Battista Judica-Cordiglia. Although it
is not stated, the Shroud would seem to have been brought out on
this occasion as a test-run/frame fitting for the TV exposition
seven weeks later.
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November 22, 1973: (Thursday) The Shroud is
displayed in the Hall of the Swiss, within Turin's Royal Palace, in
preparation for its first ever television showing. International
journalists and some serious researchers on the subject, including
Britain's Dr. David Willis and Fr. Maurus Green, are allowed to view
the Shroud directly during this time.
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November 23, 1973: (9.15-9.45 p.m.). The Shroud is
exhibited for the first time ever on television, in color, and with
a filmed introduction by Pope Paul VI.
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November 24, 1973: The Shroud is secretly examined
by a new Commission of experts, brought together by Cardinal
Pellegrino. On this occasion Professor Gilbert Raes takes from one
edge of the Shroud's frontal end one 40x13-mm sample, also from the
side-strip one 40x10-mm portion, together with one 13-mm warp thread
and one 12-mm weft thread. Dr. Max Frei, Swiss criminologist, is
among the other specialists present, and is allowed to take 12
samples of surface dust from the Shroud's extreme frontal end, using
adhesive tape to remove these. The Shroud is returned to its casket
the same evening.
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February 19, 1976: In the U.S.A., at Sandia
Laboratories, Dr. John Jackson and Bill Mottern view for the first
time the Shroud three-dimensional image via a VP8 Image Analyzer. It
is a moment that would prove to be significant in Shroud history,
since it catalyzed the interest of a diverse group of scientists
that eventually would become the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP).
They ultimately would spend 120 hours performing the first in-depth
scientific examination of the Shroud.
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April 1976: Release of Report of the Turin
Scientific Commission, with the first public information of the
pollen findings of Dr. Max Frei, who claims that the Shroud's dust
includes pollens from some plants that are exclusive to Israel and
to Turkey, suggesting that the Shroud must at one time have been
exposed to the air in these countries.
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March 23-24, 1977: First U.S. Conference of
Research on the Shroud, at the Ramada Inn, Albuquerque, New Mexico,
attended by Frs. Rinaldi and Otterbein, Rev. David Sox, Dr. John
Robinson, filmmaker David Rolfe and many listeners of what would
become the STURP team.
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May 1977: First experimental use, at Rochester
University, New York State, U.S.A., of the accelerator mass
spectrometry (AMS) method of radiocarbon dating, by which very much
smaller samples can be dated than had previously been thought
possible. This is the method that will be used to date the Shroud.
One of the leading pioneers of this method is Rochester University's
Professor Harry Gove.
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June 24, 1977: Rev. David Sox, General Secretary
of the newly formed British Society for the Turin Shroud, writes to
Professor Harry Gove of Rochester, following an article in Time
magazine about the new radiocarbon dating technique.
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September 16-17, 1977: A Symposium on the Shroud
held at the Anglican Institute of Christian Studies, London, with
Drs. Jackson, Jumper, Frei, and McCrone among the speakers, also
Frs. Rinaldi and Otterbein, Monsignor Ricci, and Don Coero-Borga.
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January 20, 1978: Anastasio Ballestrero, the new
Archbishop of Turin, announces that the Shroud is to be publicly
exhibited from 27 August to 8 October of this year, with an
International Congress on the last two days.
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June 3-4, 1978: In Colorado Springs, U.S.A., John
Jackson Eric Jumper's group of scientists meets for a conference to
plan their scientific testing of the Shroud.
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August 6, 1978: Sudden death of Pope Paul VI, who
had expected to visit Turin to view the Shroud during the period of
the expositions, one of his only two out-of-Rome engagements
pencilled in for the autumn. Convening of conclave to elect the next
Pope.
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August 26, 1978: The Shroud is exhibited at
inaugural Mass on the first day of a five-week-long period of
expositions commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Shroud in
Turin. It is the first public exhibition since 1933. In the very
same hour of the inaugural Mass, Cardinal Luciani of Venice is
proclaimed Pope in Rome, becoming Pope John Paul I, to live just
thirty-three days more. During the five weeks the Shroud is publicly
displayed, more than 3.5 million visitors view the cloth.
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September 1, 1978: Among the pilgrims who view the
Shroud on this day is Karol, Cardinal Woytywa of Poland, shortly to
become Pope John Paul II.
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September 2-3, 1978: In Amston, Connecticut, Dr.
John Jackson's group of scientists, at this time calling themselves
the United States Conference of Research on the Shroud of Turin,
meet to finalize their plans, following Turin having agreed to a
twenty-four hour test period on 9 October. This meeting would become
known as the "Dry Run" and was the first time that the entire team
assembled together. They spend their time reviewing the planned
experiments and testing their equipment, including the special table
designed to hold the Shroud. They also sign the agreement that
formally creates the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP).
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September 28, 1978: Sudden death of Pope John Paul
I. While Cardinal of Venice he had planned to visit the Shroud on 21
September and was rumored to have been intending a quiet private
visit before the close of the exposition.
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September 29, 1978: The STURP team departs the
United States for Turin under a cloud of doubt, concerned that the
death of the Pope John Paul I the night before might cause the
cancellation of their testing.
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September 30, 1978: The STURP team arrives in
Turin. Some of their luggage is lost and Italian Customs authorities
hold all eighty cases of their test equipment, refusing to release
any of it. One particularly delicate piece of x-ray equipment needs
to be filled with liquid nitrogen or it will be damaged beyond
repair. Access is denied.
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Early October, 1978: En route to Turin to take
part in the Second International Symposium on the Shroud, Professor
Harry Gove stops off in Oxford to inform Hall of Oxford about the
possibility of radiocarbon dating
