In 1973, Gilbert Raes of the Ghent Institute of Textile Technology was permitted to remove a small cutting from a corner of the Shroud. In the sample he found cotton fibers. It was thought that the cotton was leftover fibers from a loom that was used for weaving both cotton and linen cloth. Another idea was that the Shroud was exposed to cotton much later, even from the gloves used by scientists. However, when later he examined some of the C14 samples, he noticed that cotton fibers, where found, were contained inside threads, twisted in as part of the thread. It is important to note that cotton fiber is not found anywhere else on the Shroud except as miniscule, loose particles.
The Raes samples would later play an important part in proving that the 1988 carbon 14 dating was invalid. Raymond N. Rogers, a Los Alamos National Laboratory chemist, following up on RaesÂ’ examination of the 1973 sample, also found cotton. Moreover, Rogers found dyestuff and spliced threads that were not found elsewhere on the Shroud. It is significant to note that the C14 sample was taken from a spot adjacent to the Raes sample.
Later, in December 2003, Rogers obtained material that had been reserved from the center of the carbon 14 sample. It was with this material that he found the same characteristics found in Raes sample. It proved that the Shroud had been mended and that the carbon 14 dating had included a significant amount of new material.
