The Only Witness: A History of the Shroud Of Turin

As he frantically searches the clothmakers of Jerusalem for a burial cloth, Joachim senses the gravity of his mission. When he finds a light-colored, herringbone weave—not quite the fine linen his father requested but given the day’s impending events his father had no other choice. Joachim’s father hurries to Golgotha with the cloth to meet up with Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea. The cloth is used for the unthinkable—to wrap the crucified body of Jesus Christ. But three days later, the tomb is empty and the burial shroud is left, indelibly imprinted with the image of Jesus and covered with the blood from His wounds. What happens next to the shroud? 

Known today as the Shroud of Turin, the cloth is believed by some to be the most valuable Christian relic in existence; by others to be a medieval fake. In The Only Witness, author and Shroud expert Guy R. Powell uses facts and hypotheses to tell a compelling, fictional—yet plausible—story of the Shroud’s history. 

You’ll be captivated by this intriguing account of the Shroud’s miraculous survival from harm and destruction despite wars, crusades, floods, and fires. Follow its journey from Golgotha in Jerusalem to its final resting place in Turin, Italy, where it has been housed since 1578. Four hundred years later, in 1978, extensive scientific study began in order to prove or disprove its authenticity. Discover for yourself the mystery of the Shroud and determine if you think it is, indeed, the witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.