History of the Shroud (1) #50: The evidence is overwhelming that the Turin Shroud is Jesus' burial sheet!

HISTORY OF THE SHROUD (1) #50

Copyright © Stephen E. Jones[1]

This is #50, "History othf the Shroud (1)," of my series, "The evidence is overwhelming that the Turin Shroud is Jesus' burial sheet!" This post is based on my "Chronology of the Turin Shroud: Fourteenth century (2)." For more information about this "overwhelming" series, see the "Main index #1." I have decided to alternate between "Prehistory of the Shroud AD 30-1354" and "History of the Shroud 1355-" This latter will help me write Chapter "11. History of the Shroud" of my book in progress, "Shroud of Turin: Burial Sheet of Jesus!" See 06Jul17,

[Right (enlarge): The planned cover of my book.]

03Jun18, 04Apr22, 13Jul22, 8 Nov 22 & 20Jun24. The in-line references which clutter these posts are for me to choose from for the numbered endnotes in the book.

Newcomers start with: "The Turin Shroud in a nutshell"

[Main index #1] [Previous: Prehistory of the Shroud (6) #49] [Next: To be advised]

c.1355 First exposition of the Shroud in undisputed history at Lirey,

[Left (enlarge)[RCF]: Rebuilt Church of St. Mary, Lirey, France. It was on these grounds in c.1355 that the Shroud was first exhibited in undisputed history [OM10, 50].

France by Geoffroy I de Charny (c.1300–56) and his wife Jeanne de Vergy (c.1332–1428)[OM10, 4, 49; WI10, 221-222, 302.]. This date is based on a 1389 memorandum by the then Bishop of Troyes, Pierre d'Arcis (r. 1377-95) [see "1389d"], to Pope Clement VII (r. 1378-94), which stated that the Shroud had been exhibited in Lirey "thirty-four years or thereabouts" previously[HT78, 99; WI79, 91; WI98, 111; GV01, 14; OM10, 52; WI10, 228], that pilgrims were told it was "the true shroud of Christ" and that "from all parts people came together to view it"[WI79, 268; GV01, 14; OM10, 53; DT12, 14].

c.1355-56 Pilgrim's badge or medallion in the Cluny Museum, Paris[AF82, 30-31; WI98, 127; OM10, 49], from the first exposition

[Above (enlarge): Lead pilgrim's badge or medallion in the Cluny Museum, Paris[LM12] from the first undisputed exposition of the Shroud at Lirey, France from c.1355-56[WI10, 221-222].]

of the Shroud at Lirey, France, in c.1355-56. It was found in 1855[WI98, 127-127; AM00, 150] by a French archaeologist, Arthur Forgeais (1822-78), in the mud of the Seine River, Paris[BB91, 245; WI91, 194; WI98, 126-127; TF06, 42], under the Pont au Change bridge[WI79, 194; WM86, 5]. Forgeais found hundreds of pilgrim's medallions to various holy places at that location (but only one of the Lirey Shroud exposition), which indicates it was a pilgrim `wishing well' site[FA12]. The badge depicts the actual Lirey exposition[BB91, 245; SJ03, 12], with the arms and hands of two clerics holding the Shroud[WI79, 194; AF82, 31; WI98, 127; WI10, 221], whose heads and arms have broken off[BB91, 246; WI98, 127; GV01, 103]. Also depicted is the exposition platform and its support posts on either side[SJ03, 12], the tops of which have also broken off. The clerics are holding a full-length, front and back, head-to-head depiction of the Shroud[WI79, 224D; AF82, 30-31; MW86, 96; WM86, 5; WI98, 127; GV01, 103; TF06, 42; WI10, 302-303], the first known[WI79, 224D; AF82, 30-31; WM86, 5; WI91, 21; WI98, 127; WI10, 303]. The man on the Shroud is depicted fully naked, front and rear, with his hands crossed covering his genitals[WI98, 127; GV01, 103]. Under the Shroud is a depiction of the reliquary in which the Shroud was then kept[BB91, 246; GV01, 103]. That this is a depiction of the Shroud's reliquary and not simply a depiction of the de Charny and de Vergy coats of arms solves the apparent problem[WI98, 253-254] of Jeanne's coat of arms seeming to be on the right and Geoffroy's on the left[OM10, 49; WI10, 222]. The roundel in the centre represents the empty Tomb[WI79, 224D; WM86, 5; WI98, 127; GV01, 103; SJ03, 12; AM00, 15; WI10, 221], and around it are instruments of the Passion: a flagrum, the scourging column, the lance, pincers, nails, and the cross upon which is hung the crown of thorns[BB91, 246; GV01, 103; SJ03, 12]. Despite the small (about 6.2cm. by 4.5cm. (or 2½ in. by 1¾ in.) size of the badge[WI98, 126; SJ03, 12; WI10, 221; FA12], "little bigger than a large postage stamp"[WI98, 126], the mold-maker even depicted the Shroud's herringbone weave[GV01, 103; SJ03, 12; FA12; WI10, 221] [see 16Jul15]. The Cluny Museum dates this badge as 1357[WI79, 224D; MW86, 97; WM86, 5; GV01, 103] but it seems unlikely that the exposition began, or continued, after Geoffroy I's 19 September 1356 death in the Battle of Poitiers [see "1356c"]. Not only would Jeanne have been grieving the death of her husband, King John II had been captured [see "1356d"], the French army had been decimated and roving bands of English "companies" remained behind in France after the Battle of Poitiers [see "1356e"], looting defenceless French towns, which would have made it too dangerous for pilgrims to travel, let alone the danger to the Shroud [see "1358a"].

1356a In a letter dated 28 May 1356[BW57 9; WI79, 90, 193; CN84, 65; CN88, 49; SD89, 15-16; BB91, 242; WI91, 20; WI98, 128; GV01, 10; TF06,42; WI10, 224], Bishop Henri de Poitiers (r. 1354–70), writing from his diocese of Aix/Gap-Embrun (r. 1349-53)[WI98, 278; WI10, 224, 229] formally ratified Geoffroy I's letters instituting the Lirey church, praised him and approved its "divine cult":

"Henri, by the grace of God and of the Apostolic See, confirmed bishop elect of Troyes, to all those who will see this letter, eternal salvation in the Lord. You will learn what we ourselves learned on seeing and hearing the letters of the noble knight Geoffroy de Charny, Lord of Savoysy and of Lirey, to which and for which our present letters are enclosed, after scrupulous examination of these letters and more especially of the said knight's sentiments of devotion, which he has hitherto manifested for the divine cult and which he manifests ever more daily. And ourselves wishing to develop as much as possible a cult of this nature, we praise, ratify and approve the said letters in all their parts a cult which is declared and reported to have been canonically and ritually prescribed, as we have been informed by legitimate documents. To all these, we give our assent, our authority and our decision, by faith of which we esteem it our duty to affix our seal to this present letter in perpetual memory. Given in our palace of Aix of our diocese in the year of Our Lord 1356, Saturday, the 28th of the month of May" (my emphasis)[BB91, 242; WI91, 20; WI98, 128; GV01, 11; WI10, 224].

In Roman Catholic theology, a "cult" is devotion or veneration other than to God[CRW], so Henri can only be referring to the Shroud with approval because the new Lirey church didn't have any other "cult":

"Although there is no mention of a Shroud in this letter, the bishop congratulates de Charny on his `devotion ... for the divine cult' and his own wish to `develop as much as possible a cult of this nature.' The repeated references to this cult could only refer to the sacred object housed in the church and not the church proper, thereby suggesting that the Shroud was in Lirey by 1356. This document, which is kept in the archive of Aube, Lirey, is the only genuine act of Bishop Henri de Poitiers that can be authenticated"[GV01, 10-11].

1356b On 19 September 1356 the Battle of Poitiers was fought at

[Right (enlarge): Battle of Poitier at Nouaillé-Maupertuis in 1356, in the Chronicles of Froissart, c.1470[FBP]. The mounted French knights in armour (right) were no match for the longbows of the English foot-soldiers[ WI79, 199; HJ83, 18; OM10, 47; WI10, 224].]

Nouaillé, near the city of Poitiers in Aquitaine, western France[BPW]. An English army led by Edward, the Black Prince (1330–76)[AF82, 44; CN88, 49], defeated a much larger French army led by King John II (r. 1350–64)[WI79, 199; AM00, 151; BPW]. The loss included the capture of King John II[WI98, 278; BPW], his son Philip II (1342–1404)[PTW], and much of the French nobility[BPW]. The effect of the defeat on France was catastrophic, leaving the country in the hands of the 18 year-old Dauphin, and future King, Charles V (r. 1364-80)[BPW; CVW].

1356c Death of Geoffroy I de Charny on 19 September 1356 in the Battle of Poitiers[AF82, 44; GV01, 12; GNW]. He died, Oriflamme in hand[CN88, 49; WI98, 278; RC99; 64], interposing his body between an English lance and his king[WI79, 91; CN88, 49; WI91, 21; WI98, 278; RC99; 64]. Geoffroy's body is buried in a nearby graveyard[WI98, 278] but 14 years later, in 1370, his gallantry was publicly recognized in a state funeral when his remains were reburied in the Abbey of the Celestins in Paris[WI79, 91; CN88, 49; WI91, 21] [see future "1370"].

1356d King John II was taken captive in the same Battle of Poitiers[JTW]. The Treaty of Brétigny in 1360 set John's ransom at 3 million crowns, so leaving his son Louis I, Duke of Anjou (1339–84) in English-held Calais as hostage[LNW], John returned to France to raise the funds[JTW]. However in 1363 Louis escaped[LNW] and John, for reasons of "good faith," voluntarily returned to England[JTW], where he died in 1364 and his body was returned to France[JTW].

1356e Marauding bands of English soldiers, called "companies," after the Battle of Poitiers, began roaming the French countryside, looting defenceless towns and castles[OM10, 51]. The two largest companies were led by French archpriest Arnaud de Cervole (c. 1320-66) and English knight Sir Robert Knolles (c. 1325-1407)[OM10, 51].

1357 In June twelve bishops of the pontifical court at Avignon grant indulgences to all who visit the church of St Mary of Lirey and its relics[WI98, 278; GV01, 12; OM10, 52]. However, the Shroud is not listed as a relic of the Lirey church[BB91, 245]. And never was[RTB], because it was the private property of the de Charnys[RTB],. See 16Feb15, 20Jun18 & 09Nov18, where Geoffroy I's granddaughter, Marguerite de Charny (1390-1460) , refused to return the Shoud to the canons of the Lirey church becuase it was "conquis par feu" ("conquered by fire"), that is a "spoil of war" of Geoffroy I (presumably conferred on him by King Philip VI (1328-50) - see 10Feb18).

1358a A "company" (see "1356e") under English knight Robert Knolles (c.1325–1407) attempts to capture Troyes, but under the leadership of Bishop Henri de Poitiers, the attack fails[OM10, 51]. Lirey is only ~12 miles (~19 km) from Troyes[WM86, 11; CN88, 37; WI98, 129; RC99, 65; AM00, 151; SJ03, 13; OM10, 51.] and such a valuable and well-known religious artifact as the Shroud would have been a prime target for one of the companies, so presumably it had already been taken to a safer region of France[WI10, 229].

1358b In May there began a short-lived, but widespread peasants' revolt, known as the Jacquerie[JQW], which spread into Lirey's Champagne region, and although it was directed primarily against the nobility in manors and castles (which included Jeanne's), there was also indiscriminate looting[WM86, 81; WI98, 278; OM10, 50; WI10, 229].

c. 1358 Due to the threats of the "companies" [see "1356e" and "1358a"] and the peasants' revolt [see "1358b"], presumably the Shroud was taken in c. 1358 by Geoffroy I's widow Jeanne, with her two young children Geoffroy II (1352-98) and Charlotte (c.1356-98), to a safer region of France[OM10, 51-52; WI10, 228-229]. Such as her castle at Montfort-en-Auxois [Right (enlarge)[Château de Montfort].] (aka Montfort near Montbard)[PA07] which was ~93 km (~58 mi) south of Lirey. [see 16Feb15a].

c. 1359 Jeanne married the wealthy and influential Aymon IV of Geneva (c. 1324-88)[WI79, 203; AF82, 33; WI91, 18; WI98, 279; GV01, 12-13; OM10, 68; WI10, 229], an uncle of Robert of Geneva (1342-94), who became Avignon Pope Clement VII (r. 1378-94)[WI79, 203, 205; AF82, 33; CN88, 43; WI91, 18; CN95, 34; GV01, 13; OM10, 83] [see future "1378"]. Then she took her two children Geoffroy II and Charlotte, and the Shroud from Montfort to the safety of one of Aymon's estates in High Savoy (that part of France bordering both Sitzerland and Italy), probably Anthon[WI91, 18; WI10, 229-230] [see 16Feb15b]. Aymon's domains were close to Annecy where Clement VII had been born and grew up[WI91, 18]. Because of Clement VII's unexpected siding with Geoffroy II and Jeanne's 1389 exposition of the Shroud against Bishop d'Arcis' objections [see "1389f"], presumably Jeanne had privately shown the Shroud to Robert of Geneva and explained its history[OM10, 83], how her Fourth Crusader ancestor Othon de la Roche (c.1170-1234) had looted the Shroud in the 1204 Sack of Constantinople and brought it to Burgundy, France, via Athens [see "c1332"] [SD89, 96-97; TF06, 32]. So Pope Clement VII would have known the true facts about the Shroud's history, how it had come into the possession of the de Charny family and why this must remain a secret [see 15Aug17] [CN88, 43].

1370 Geoffroy I was given a hero's reburial at the Abbey of the Celestins in Paris by John II's son, King Charles V (r. 1364-80)[WI79, 203; WI91, 21; WI98, 279].

1375 Archbishop Guillaume (William) de Vergy (r. 1371-91)[ BB91, 245; SD91, 199], claimed to have found the original Besançon shroud lost in the 1349 fire [see "1349b"] [SD91, 199-200] and `verified' it by a `miracle' of laying that `shroud' on a dead man who immediately revived[SD91, 200; GV01, 12]! Thus a de Vergy `verified' by this `miracle' that this was the original Shroud[SD91, 200], which fits the theory that the de Vergys arranged the transfer of the Shroud from Besançon in Burgundy to Jeanne de Vergys in Paris[SD91, 200] [see "c1343"]. This painted copy of the Shroud with the frontal image only[SD91, 200; GV01, 12] [see "c1351"] was kept at Besançon until it was destroyed in 1794 during the French Revolution[BA34, 57; GV01, 12; TF06, 39; OM10, 113]. Guillaume was a favourite of John II's older son, King Charles V[HVW], but came into conflict with John II's youngest son Duke Philip II of Burgundy (1342–1404), whom he excommunicated and took refuge at Avignon[GDW]. Where he was in 1391 made Cardinal of Besançon by Avignon Pope Clement VII (r. 1378-94)[HVW].

c.1375 Previously thought (following Wilson) to be the only known examples of medieval herringbone twill linen weave, which are in

[Left (enlarge): The larger fragment of only known other examples of a herringbone twill weave in linen (the grey part is a reconstruction), dated the second half of the fourteenth century[WI98, 69], in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, ref. no. 8615-1863[WI98, 69]. This 18 cm x 10.5 cm fragment, the larger of two (see ref. 7027-1860), is of coarser weave than the Shroud and was sold to the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1863 by collector Franz Bock (1823-99) who attributed it to Italy[WI90, 14].]

the Victoria and Albert Museum, London[WI98, 69]. However, Wilson had evidently overlooked that French ancient textile curator Gabriel Vial (1916-2005), had mentioned in his 1976 technical report on the Shroud (see 12Oct24), that the "only herringbone in linen so far analysed and published is that ... [by] Martin de Vos ... This painting of The Last Supper is on linen with a 3:1 (herringbone) twill weave. It is very late — second half of the XVI th century — and much simpler than that of Turin." (see below).

[Right (enlarge [12Oct24]): "The Last Supper" (c. 1575) by Maerten de Vos (1532-1603). It is painted on a piece of 3:1 herring-bone twill weave linen, 1.46 metres (57.48 in.) high and 2.125 metres (83.66 in.) wide].

These are the only known examples of herringbone twill linen (other than the Shroud - see 16Jul15b]). So how could a medieval forger (unknown) have obtained a ~4.4 m x 1.1 m [see 16Jul15c] herringbone twill linen sheet on which to depict (by unknown means) Jesus' crucified body (front and back)?]

Notes:
1. This post is copyright. I grant permission to extract or quote from any part of it (but not the whole post), provided the extract or quote includes a reference citing my name, its title, its date, and a hyperlink back to this page. [return]

Bibliography
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RTB. Reference(s) to be provided.
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Posted 1 December 2024. Updated 20 December 2024.