The Dispute around the Shroud of Turin
The reason for this dispute is primarily because it is considered not to be the shroud of some ordinary man - who has no relevance today -, but because it is venerated as the shroud of Jesus Christ. If this would actually be the case, the image on the shroud would be a kind of photo of Jesus of Nazareth. The shroud would be also an important witness for the central event of christianity: the crucifixion, burial and (perhaps also) the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The interpretation of the observations and scientific results on the shroud depends therefore on the religious convictions of the observer.
Most of the scientists, who have examined the shroud in more detail, are convinced that it is genuine. But - there seems to be no scientific explanation concerning the formation of the image. Therefore some consider the shroud an ingenious medieval forgery, but have also no explanation for the formation of the image, which would be a kind of painting then.
Hints that this can not be case are:
The history of the shroud can be traced back unto the first century
The image is a kind of photographic negative and contains a threedimensional information, as the darkness of each image-spot depends on the distance between the body and the cloth, at the time, when the image was formed (the closer the darker).
There are no traces of artificial color corresponding to the image. The chemical substance that make the image could be identified but was never used for painting.
All anatomical details are correct - no medieval painter could have all the necessary knowledge.
The results of the C14-test ("the cloth dates from the middle ages") has increased the dispute, because all the other research results support the hypothesis that the Shroud of Turin is genuine.