525

Events:

• A dangerous flood in Edessa in which 30,000 people die and almost all major public buildings are destroyed.
• During the work to reconstruct the walls, a cloth is found, hidden in a niche above the west gate. It bears the likeness of Christ, named acheiropoieton, or not made by hands. Without any inquiry, the cloth is identified with the original portrait brought to Abgar by Thaddeus.
• Emperor Justinian allocates money to build a system to protect Edessa from floods and to build a magnificent temple for the storage of the cloth: the Hagia Sophia Cathedral in Edessa.
• Since then, a completely new frontal type of portrait of Jesus has appeared in art, showing a striking resemblance to the face from the Shroud.

Comment:

Finding the Shroud in the form of a 'portrait’; no one realises the true nature of the cloth.

The cloth is considered so sacred that access to it is difficult. However, a portrait of Christ has been drawn up from the image, becoming a reliable canon.