Final answer:
The Shroud of Turin was dated to be approximately 600-700 years old in 1988 using carbon-14 dating, which found it contained 92% of the carbon-14 found in living tissues.
Step-by-step explanation:
Calculating the Age of the Shroud of Turin
The Shroud of Turin is an artifact that has been subject to carbon-14 dating to determine its age. Carbon-14 (¹4C) dating is a method used to find the age of once-living materials. The half-life of carbon-14 is approximately 5,370 years, which means after this period, half of the original ¹4C has decayed. Since the Shroud of Turin contained 92% of the carbon-14 found in living tissue when it was examined in 1988, we can use the decay formula to estimate its age.
To calculate the age of the Shroud, we use the following relationship involving the carbon-14 decay rate:
ln(N/N₀) = -kt
Where:
- N is the current amount of ¹4C,
- N₀ is the original amount of ¹4C,
- k is the decay constant,
- t is the time elapsed in years.
The decay constant k can be found using the half-life formula:
k = ln(2) / half-life = ln(2) / 5370 years
Since the Shroud contains 92% of the carbon-14 as compared to living tissue, we can set up the equation as follows:
ln(0.92) = -k * t
If we solve for t we can estimate the age of the Shroud. This calculation puts it around 600-700 years old, which is much younger than the 2,000 years that would be expected if it were in fact the burial cloth of Jesus.