DNA Analysis Says Turin Shroud May Have Indian Traces

JAKARTA - Recent DNA analysis has raised new suspicions about the origin of the Turin Shroud material. Reported by The Independent, Wednesday, April 1, the study said that the thread used to make the linen fabric likely came from the Indus Valley region in ancient India.

About 40 percent of the human DNA found on the Shroud of Turin is said to be from Indian lineages. The findings were obtained from an analysis of material collected from the relic in 1978.

The Turin Shroud is known as one of the most controversial Christian artifacts in the world. The cloth measuring about 4.4 meters by 1.1 meters is believed by some to have been used to wrap Jesus' body after being crucified. The relic was first documented in France in 1354 and is now kept in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin, Italy.

The Independent reported that researchers, including Gianni Barcaccia of the University of Padova, found various traces of animal, plant, and human material on the cloth. In a study published on BioRxiv and not yet peer-reviewed, they wrote that "DNA trace analysis" on the Shroud of Turin showed the possibility that the cloth was widely exposed in the Mediterranean region, while opening the possibility that the thread was produced in India.

Researchers also noted that 38.7 percent of the human genome data on the cloth came from Indian lineages. The findings, they wrote, were "unexpected" and could be related to historical interactions with the relic, or the possibility that the linen and its thread were imported from an area near the Indus Valley.

Other traces found were also diverse. There was dog, cat, chicken, cow, goat, sheep, pig, horse, and wild animals such as deer and rabbits. Plant DNA from carrots, bell peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and several types of wheat was also found in the samples.

Because the cloth seems to have been in contact with many people for centuries, researchers consider it very difficult to identify the "original DNA" of the relic. Traces of human contact are also visible from the presence of skin bacteria such as Cutibacterium and Staphylococcus.

Although it provides new clues about the biological history of the Turin Shroud, this study has not been able to determine the age of the cloth. However, researchers consider the findings to be important because they help explain the biological traces left after centuries of social, cultural, and environmental interactions.