News Summary

• Study is the first to use advanced genomic sequencing methods on official samples taken from the Shroud in 1978.
• Researchers also found DNA from cultivated plants, domesticated animals and Mediterranean red coral.
• These traces point to the wide range of environments, objects and people that may have come into contact with the Shroud during its long history.
• The findings are not intended to establish the Shroud's age or authenticity.
• Instead, they show how forensic genomics and proteomics can be used to reconstruct the biological history of culturally significant objects.