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Material intrusion is a potential problem in some carbon 14 dating exercises.
A classic example is the dating of peat from ancient bogs. Miniscule roots from
much newer plants get entangled in the peat -- some roots having decomposed into
newer peat -- and this will distort the results. Did material intrusion affecte the results of dating of the Shroud? Yes! As
it turns out, chemical and visual analyses, done in just the last two years,
show unmistakable proof of material intrusion of new linen fibers. By some
estimates there is enough material intrusion to make a 1st century cloth seem
medieval. The discovery of alizarin and purpurin dyes (from Madder root), a
hydrous aluminum oxide mordant and plant gum along with twisted-in cotton fibers
and spliced threads in the carbon 14 sample region shows that the sample area
was discretely repaired. These substances are not found anywhere else on the
Shroud. |
The
scientific study of the Turin shroud is like a microcosm of the
scientific search for God: it does more to inflame any debate than
settle it.”
It is
simply not known how the ghostly image of a serene, bearded man was
made.”
Scientist-Journalist Philip Ball Nature, that most prestigious of scientific journals, that once had bragging rights to claim that the Shroud was fake, responding to new, peer-reviewed studies that discredit the carbon 14 dating and show that the Shroud could be authentic. WHAT WE KNOW IN 2005
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