Teeth Visible on the Shroud of Turin

Very Average Joe
2 days ago
2 min read

An essay by J. Sottosanti titled “Dental Surgeon’s Observance of Teeth in the Image on the Shroud of Turin” published on 1 September 2025 supports the view that the lower teeth are partially visible on the image of the Shroud of Turin.

The paper is short at just over 1,500 words and is an easy read.

Many have assessed the Shroud image to be anatomically correct. Whilst the STURP team did not comment specifically on the teeth in 1978, the opinion that teeth are visible on the Shroud is not new. Dr G.F. Carter, an archaeological chemist, made the observation in 1982. Others even claimed that the roots of the upper and lower teeth are visible.

Dr Sottosanti disagrees with the latter, that it is actually the weave.

[T]hroughout the Shroud image, there is a melding of the image with the pattern of the weave. In the area of the lower lip, at a certain point as you move inferiorly away from the crowns of the teeth, the weave becomes more prominent, and the vertical striations in the weave appear to be roots. These striations extend beyond the normal length of the teeth, so it is the weave, and not the roots, which are evident. The vertical striations of the cloth are visible in the cheeks, chin, and other areas of the image.

Nonetheless, the lower teeth are partially visible. See Figure 2 reproduced below.

An incisal plane is visible in the Shroud image for the lower teeth, but not for the upper. Perhaps this is due to the separation of the upper and lower teeth, as well as the presence of both a mustache and lip covering the upper teeth. Below the lower incisal plane, one can see teeth, the lighter objects in the Shroud image. The presence of teeth creates whiter images than the surrounding jawbone, as shown in a dental panoramic image.

The slight separation of the teeth is possibly due to primary flaccidity when the muscles—in this case, the jaw—relax after death.

Although outside the scope of the paper, the author suspects that the mechanism that formed the image involved a “burst of light energy” even though the upper teeth are not visible. In this respect, the Shroud image continues to defy explanation. Ultimately, like many, he admits that “[d]efining the type of energy and its properties may never be accomplished”.