The handkerchief in verse 7 above is the Sudarium of Oviedo, a bloodstained cloth kept in the Cathedral of San Salvador in Oviedo, Spain. The Greek word "soudarion" and Latin "sudarium," both mean a ‘sweat-cloth’ for wiping the sweat from the face. In Greek-Roman times handkerchiefs were in fashion. These handkerchiefs were frequently used to tie up small bundles of certain possessions. As a rule, the dead had their faces covered with one or had it tied around the head.
It is believed that the face-cloth which was placed on the face/head of Jesus following his crucifixion, is the famous Sudarium of Oviedo. This small linen napkin measures approximately 2¾ feet by 1¾ feet. By contrast, The burial Shroud is over 14 feet long and 3 feet wide.
There are many similarities between the Sudarium of Oviedo and the Shroud of Turin, leading to the undeniable conclusion that they covered the same person:
- The material used in the two cloths is identical, although there are differences in the manner of weaving.
- The marks on the two cloths match in size, location, and how they formed. The stains on the back of the two cloths match.
- Blood and lymph stains on the two cloths match. The AB blood type is common in the Middle East, not Europe in the time.
- Both cloths have a nose that is 8 centimeters (3 inches) long.
- The dirt molecules in the cloth in the location of the nose where Jesus hit the ground when he fell while carrying the cross beam match the dirt from there in Jerusalem.
- Similar pollen grains are found on both cloths and they come from the same region in the Land.
- Both cloths contain aloe and myrrh, which were used by Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea to treat Jesus's body.
- The beard and forehead and the blood stain locations are all exact matches
The Sudarium of Oviedo and the Shroud of Turin
The Shroud of Turin has undergone considerably more scientific testing than any other relic in human history.” —Fr. Spitzer
The Shroud of Turin is the best known religious relic throughout the world. Literally hundreds of books, and thousands of papers and articles have been written on the Shroud of Turin. The Review of Religions magazine has covered the Shroud multiple times.
The cloth bares an image of a crucified man. The proponents of the Shroud believe it to be the actual burial cloth used to cover the body of Jesus over 2 thousand years ago.
The Sudarium of Oviedo, on the other hand, is far less famous but it independently supports the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin and provides new evidence about what happened to Jesus immediately after the crucifixion
Far fewer books and articles exist covering this cloth and it has never had the level of mainstream media coverage as the Shroud. The Shroud of Turin has always attracted more attention due to the image formed upon the shroud of a crucified man.
To the naked eye the Sudarium a small cloth with some stains of blood and water. There isn't the image on the Sudarium like the Shroud. The Sudarium would have been removed before preparing the body, so it actually makes sense that there isn't as much of an image. The Light of the ressurection didn't have to pass through the Sudarium. But the blood was preserved since the Light filled the tomb.
Chain of Custody
There is no doubt that the Shroud of Turin and the Sudarium of Oviedo were together at one time - In the Tomb! The two linens were separated from there and eventually carried away to other countries.
The Shroud has a mysterious chain of custody until the 1300's when it showed up. Unlike the Shroud, the Sudarium has never been missing, so there’s no question regarding its ancient origin and chain of custody.
* More complete details about the chain of custody are at the end of this post.
Kept Apart
In John 20.7 we learn that "the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself."
The scriptures make a point of saying the Shroud and the Sudarium were placed apart. The Sudarium was "in a place by itself." They have NOT been together since Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus put Jesus in the tomb. I find the wording "folded together" interesting. It seems to be emphasizing their belonging together.
The two artifacts are kept apart; so much so that they are defined by the locations in their names: "of Turin" and "of Oviedo."
Is There A Message in Their Seperation?
I wondered about this. Why would who ever took the Shroud out of the tomb leave the Sudarium and visa versa? I noticed how each artifact reinforces trust in the other. Each artifact tells part of story of the crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection. Bringing them together the story is more clear and complete.
Could Jesus be sending a message by their separation? Could it be that Jesus wanted the two artifacts to be separated until this time? If so, are their any clues in the facts we know?
The Shroud is in Turin Italy and the Sudarium is in Oviedo Spain. They are 680 miles apart. Could that number, 680, reveal something which God wants the world to know?
As a Jew I have a thing for the numbers in the Torah. The Torah is full of numbers and equations. The Universe is mathmatical. The Laws of the Universe are mathmatical. Surely God could have given us message in separating the Shroud and the Sudarium!
Coincidence? To satisfy my curiosity I checked the gematria for that number, 680 miles. Frankly, I was not expecting any significant results. I noticed two gematria matches right away that blew my mind.
1) The first, while related, wasn't all that impressive. One gematria value for the #680 is "Trust In God."
What I like about this result is it does fit in with my theory that the shroud is "
the sign of Jonah."
2) התערה = 680 that Hebrew word is found in Lamentations 4.21. In Lamentations 4.21 KJV in English it means "to make oneself naked, to expose one's own nakedness or shame."
The full verse in KJV reads "Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom, that dwellest in the land of Uz; the cup also shall pass through unto thee: thou shalt be drunken, and shalt make thyself naked."
21 in Hebrew is the letter ש -21 - Shin. The next verse is verse ת - 22 Tov (the last letter in the Hebrew alpha-beyt, that looks like a cross in ancient glyphs) reads, "The punishment of thine iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; he will no more carry thee away into captivity: he will visit thine iniquity, O daughter of Edom; he will discover thy sins."
(680 miles is 1094 Kilometers. That matches "Jesuits.")
My Conclusion
The Sudarium has the evidence of the final moments and the last breath Jesus took as a man. The Shroud has the evidence of Jesus's crucifixion, time in the tomb and ressurection. Together they testify to the gospel, the fulfillment of prophecies in the Tenach. If there is a message in their separation then there is a message in them coming together.
Modern science has brought the images of the Shroud and the Sudarium together again for the first time in 2000 years. Increased knowledge reveals what the Apostle John understood when he saw the Linen-clothes and the folded together in a place by itself.
John 20.8-9 -- Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead
Previous blog posts:
* Chain of Custody: Before the Crusaders came into possession of the Sudarium it was, according to an account by Antoninus of Piacenza, hidden in a cave near the monastery of St. Mark, not far from Jerusalem. When Persian forces invaded the Byzantine provinces in 614, the oak case in which the Sudarium was kept was spirited out of Palestine through northern Africa by Philip “the Presbyter,” a leader of the Christian community in Palestine. Philip and his precious cargo were welcomed to Alexandria by John the Almoner, bishop of Alexandria at the time. When the Persians pushed on into Egypt, the chest was carried into Spain and entrusted to St. Fulgentius, who sent it on to Seville. The Ark was carried from Toledo north to Monte Sacro in Asturias in 711 A.D., to escape the advancing Moors. It was there that King Alfonso II turned back the Moors and erected a Camara Santa (holy chamber) to shelter the relics. King Alfonso had the ancient oak chest plated with silver with the inscription “The Sacred Sudarium of Our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Sudarium made its way to the town of Oviedo, in north-central Spain, where it has been venerated for centuries. Since 631 A.D. the Sudarium was in the possession of the Knights Templar, the Moors, El Cid, saints and bishops. In A.D. 840, King Alfonso II of Asturias erected a chapel to protect the Sudarium, which was enshrined in an elaborate reliquary chest called the Arca Santa. The Sudarium is now housed in a reliquary with a Romanesque metal frontal, and is displayed for the public in Oviedo three times each year: Good Friday, The Feast of the Triumph of the Cross (Sept. 14), and on the Octave of the Feast (Sept. 21).
Sources:
The Sudarium of Oviedo and the Shroud
https://www.ncregister.com/blog/the-sudarium-of-oviedo-the-other-shroud-of-jesus
https://www.magiscenter.com/blog/facts-about-shroud-turin
Chain of Custody
Shroud DNA Analysis
