A GROUNDBREAKING museum dedicated to the Shroud of Turin — the world’s most studied artifact that’s believed by many to be the actual burial shroud of Jesus of Nazareth — is opening to the public on Nov. 19 at the Christ Cathedral campus.
“The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience” will have a total exhibition area of 10,000 square feet. As the largest museum of its kind, visitors will be taken on a historical journey into the life of Jesus, His torturous death, Resurrection and the burial shroud He left behind. Inspired by the technological marvels of the “Van Gogh Exhibition” and “Immersive King Tut,” the 90-minute experience will offer the latest evidence and scientific research about the Shroud through a series of 360-degree projection-room theaters, interactive kiosks, a life-size Jesus corpus, new artwork, Shroud replicas and more.
The museum is located inside the Richard H. Pickup Cultural Center at the Christ Cathedral campus in Garden Grove until at least 2030. It is presented by Papaian Studios in partnership with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange and Othonia Inc., a Rome-based group dedicated to the study and dissemination of information about the Shroud of Turin. Papaian Studios is a newly formed media company dedicated to creating and supporting projects that illuminate faith, inspire hope and positively impact culture. “The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience” at Christ Cathedral is its inaugural project.
The $5-million museum was approved by the Bishops of Orange and privately funded through the generosity of donors. It is operated by a separate nonprofit, the Shroud Experience at Christ Cathedral. A majority of the museum’s written content and research was completed by Othonia for use in the museum. The creative direction came from FiveHive Studios, a Vista-based group of industry professionals who crafted the animation, immersion theaters, kiosks and video content.
“The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience” is divided into two main sections: the first is theater encounters explaining who Jesus Christ was and what the Shroud of Turin is; the second section explores the intriguing debate, evidence and history surrounding the Shroud itself. A highlight will be a re-creation of the Resurrection, with guests sitting in the tomb of Jesus and witnessing a flash of light — an experience of the desolation of Good Friday and the awe-inspiring wonder of Easter Morning.
PHOTOS BY EVERETT JOHNSON/DIOCESE OF ORANGE
“We’re inviting all into the tomb to see what Jesus’ Apostles John and Peter saw,” said Nora Creech, North America director of Othonia. “And then we’re encouraging them to explore and question, just like Jesus told Thomas. Put your hands here and probe around, examine, ask all your questions. The Shroud holds up to it. It encourages curiosity and it holds up to every level of scrutiny.”
Pat Powers, vice president of the Shroud Experience, added, “If all we do is prove that the Shroud was the shroud of Jesus, without the Resurrection, all we’ve done is prove it’s a shroud of a guy who lived 2,000 years ago. But it’s a lot more than that. We’re going to show people that their faith is not in vain. The Shroud shows us that Jesus was, in fact, resurrected. The museum shows us how we can discern that from the Shroud.”
Doors will be open seven days a week. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and $10 for children ages 10 to 14. Given the mature topics and subject materials, children under 10 will not be admitted. Tickets are available by visiting TheShroudExperience.com. School and group discounts are available.
Catholic school officials in the Diocese of Orange and neighboring dioceses are working to incorporate a visit to the museum into their standard seventh-grade curriculum. Though located within a Catholic campus, “The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience” will have an ecumenical approach that helps visitors of all faiths and backgrounds learn more about the historic figure of Jesus of Nazareth and His mysterious Shroud: a linen cloth that bears the faint image of a crucified man. Subject to vigorous debate for many decades, the Shroud of Turin — named after Turin, Italy, where it has been kept since 1578 — has been extensively subjected to review by more than 100 different scientific disciplines.
Though the actual Shroud will not be present in the museum — it has not left Italy in centuries and is rarely on display due to its fragility — the highly detailed Shroud replicas and kiosks within “The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience” will permit guests their own close examination.
“We are confident that ‘The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience’ will prove to be an important evangelization tool throughout the Diocese of Orange and beyond with Catholics, other Christians and people of all faith persuasions,” said Terry McGaughan, president of the Shroud Experience.
“We will let our guests decide: Who was this man? We’ll provide the data and the evidence. We believe the facts will lead many people to agree with our conclusion: The man of the Shroud was truly Jesus Christ.”
WHAT TO EXPECT: THE FIRST TWO ROOMS
The museum occupies the entire second floor of the Richard H. Pickup Cultural Center, designed by famed architect Richard Meier and completed in 2002. The second floor had been a flex space for meetings and other gatherings but has now had new walls and infrastructure installed to accommodate the museum.
Guests start in the Welcome Hall, highlighted by the first of the two Shroud replicas. The first replica is a detailed copy of the original Shroud approved by the archbishop of the Catholic archdiocese in Turin, Italy. Visitors can closely examine the Shroud and explore its many remarkable features. The Welcome Hall also has a small corpus of Jesus lying on top of a Shroud print — a hint of what’s to come.
Next, the doors open to the Prologue Hall, which features a short video highlighting the upcoming experience. It contains artistic animations and a Shroud of Turin 101: what it is and why it has mattered to so many people.
THREE IMMERSIVE THEATERS
After the Prologue Hall, guests enter the first of three theaters featuring 360-degree immersion technology. Images will be projected onto the floor and walls. Each experience lasts 18 minutes, and guests will sit as the rooms transform around them.
The first room is titled “Immersive Life of Jesus.” It tells 12 short stories about the life of Jesus, each connected to an element of transformation: such as when He walked on water, the Transfiguration and the Nativity birth (which features Mary’s belly glowing with light).
The videos feature photo-realistic imagery, akin to scenes from “The Chosen” that transport guests back to Jesus’ time. The video ends with an image of a stone rolling away, which segues into the second theater.
The second experience, “Interactive Shroud of Jesus,” is a re-creation of Jesus’ tomb. The walls resemble real stone and were crafted by Rancho Cucamonga artist Shane Grammer, who based his work on pictures of authentic burial tombs of Jesus’ era. “Interactive Shroud of Jesus” will show a short documentary on the Shroud of Turin, featuring testimony from Shroud expert Fr. Robert Spitzer, S.J. Fr. Spitzer is the founder of the Magis Center, which is based at the Christ Cathedral campus and explores the intersections of science, reason and faith. The film builds the case for the authenticity of the Shroud through exploration of the evidence: archaeological, historic and anthropological. The video concludes with a re-creation of the moment of the Resurrection, replete with special effects and a burst of light.
BISHOP THANH THAI NGUYEN BLESSES THE CONSTRUCTION SITE WITH HOLY WATER DURING THE SEPT. 8 ANNOUNCEMENT DAY FOR “THE SHROUD OF TURIN: AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE.”
This transitions into the third theater, “Immersive Risen Jesus,” which at first resembles an ancient chapel from 1st-century Jerusalem. It contains pews to sit in and projected frescoes on the walls by famed artists like Caravaggio, Michelangelo and da Vinci. Through special animation, the frescoes will come alive to tell post-Resurrection stories of Jesus.
EMMA WAGNER OF OTHONIA INC., LEFT, UNVEILS THE LUIGI ENZO MATTEI STATUE OF JESUS AS PAT POWERS LOOKS ON DURING A SPECIAL BLESSING CEREMONY FOR “THE SHROUD OF TURIN: AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE” ON SEPT. 8.
The scenery then continues transforming into the modern day and asks the underlying question: Who is the man of the Shroud?
A SERIES OF EXHIBITS
After exiting the immersive theaters, visitors will continue their visit through another five areas of the museum. The first area is the Scripture Exhibit, which contains detailed replicas of the Passion, such as a Roman spear, flagrum whip and the Crown of Thorns.
BISHOP TIMOTHY FREYER BLESSES THE SPACES HOUSING “THE SHROUD OF TURIN: AN IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE.”
The second is the History Exhibit, highlighted by a diorama re-creation of Jesus’ tomb. Nearby is a pair of interactive kiosks, one of which lets guests closely examine all the layers of the Shroud of Turin, such as the blood stains, water damage and burn marks. The kiosk is the first of its kind in the world.
The second kiosk explores the Sudarium of Oviedo: a bloodstained piece of cloth that, like the Shroud of Turin, is believed to have covered the face of Jesus after his Crucifixion. Notably, the kiosk shows how there are 120 points of congruence matching the Sudarium of Oviedo to the Shroud of Turin. Behind the History Exhibit, a handmade replica statue of Jesus on the crucifix will be installed after the museum’s opening date. The crucifix is a replica of one originally by Monsignor Giulio Ricci, former Vatican archivist and a prominent sindonology expert (the word for the scientific study of the Shroud of Turin). The cross is a graphic depiction showing around 300 wounds from more than 100 scourgings of Jesus. It will be in a tucked away corner of the museum so guests can choose to view it at their discretion. Monsignor Ricci, who died in 1995, studied the Shroud of Turin for more than 50 years, penning numerous books and giving many lectures. He was a pivotal contributor to the scientific, iconographic and medical study of sindonology, having been accredited by the Vatican to provide qualified studies on the subject.
After the History Exhibit is the Science Room, which features video and explanations of the many studies on the Shroud, such as the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP) of 1978. Next is the Fr. Spitzer Room, where two kiosks allow guests to ask the Jesuit priest 17 questions and hear pre-recorded videos with his responses.
The next space is the Historical Timeline: a 30-foot graphic of Shroud-related imagery throughout history. It covers the Shroud’s movements and aspects that were highly influenced by it.
THE FINAL ROOM
The remaining space is called the Reflection Room. It is highlighted by a full-size, backlit Shroud replica. The Reflection Room is darkened, making the replica easy to examine. Next to the replica is a pair of lenticulars highlighted by spotlights. The lenticulars provide a front and back view of the man of the Shroud, giving a visual representation of the three-dimensional information captured in the Shroud.
There is also a new bronze sculpture by Italian artist Luigi Enzo Mattei. The sculpture depicts Jesus lying on his back, with the tension and energy reflecting the split second before He opens His eyes in resurrected glory. Notably, the corpus was made to resemble how the Shroud of Turin suggests Jesus looked: a bearded man, about 5 feet, 11 inches. The final touch is an empty cross on the exit wall, reminding guests that Jesus has risen.