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Science, Conflict and the Devotional Artifact: a Social Cartography of the Turin Shroud Controversy

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Science, Conflict and the Devotional Artifact: a Social Cartography of the Turin Shroud Controversy SCIENCE, CONFLICT AND THE DEVOTIONAL ARTIFACT: A SOCIAL CARTOGRAPHY OF THE TURIN SHROUD CONTROVERSY PATRICIA H. MACMILLAN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY GRADUATE PROGRAM IN SOCIOLOGY YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2012 Library and Archives Bibliotheque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du 1+1 Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-92788-5 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-92788-5 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distrbute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. Canada Abstract This dissertation comprises an historical case study of a scientific controversy concerning the provenance, authenticity and material attributes of a Catholic devotional artifact known as the Shroud of Turin, an ancient linen burial cloth imprinted with a faint image of a man who bears the marks of a Roman crucifixion. Beginning with an account of a 1978 scientific inquiry into the shroud carried out by a team of American scientists, this project traces the charged epistemic disputes that unfolded among scientific and non- scientific actors over the question of the shroud’s historical status, which endured for years following the inquiry. It is argued here that scientific disputes concerning a devotional artifact lend distinctive insights into how we might comprehend the conditions underlying epistemic conflict, the agential role of material objects in configuring and circumscribing controversy, and the reasons why closure in controversy is complicated by scientists’ reverence to the socio-material ambiguities of the devotional artifact itself. It is further argued that the epistemic and political disputes among shroud scientists were compelled by contenders’ commitment to both the instrumental and intrinsic value of imparting a credible scientific narrative of the Turin shroud for the broader social milieu. Dedication For my mother, with absolute love. v Acknowledgements I wish to express my wholehearted thanks to Dr. Janice Newson, my committee chair and dear friend, for her wisdom, encouragement and tireless engagement with this project, and for lifting my spirits countless times as I made my way through this journey. I am deeply indebted to my committee members- Dr. Karen Anderson and Dr. Aryn Martin - for their invaluable support, advice and careful guidance. My love and gratitude go to my sisters - Katherine Osterlund, Tamar Meyer, Marcia Oliver, Liz Rondinelli, Sam Ladner, Heather Hax, Sarah Rogers, Sarah Homstein, Yota Vassou, Jenny Blackbird and Kerry Dale - for the gift of their friendship. Thank you to Johnny R. for his steadfast friendship, and for keeping me amused over the years with his outlandish (yet somehow persuasive) theories of the world. My deepest gratitude goes to Barrie Schwortz for generously granting me the use of his beautiful photographs of the Turin expedition. My thanks to Kenneth Murphy, who unknowingly placed me on this path. I am grateful for the gentle company of my little beagle Jake, who taught me the art of taking spontaneous naps in a patch of sunlight. Finally, my love and thanks go to my mother Sabine, and my husband Christian, who have always been the wellsprings of strength in my life. vi Table of Contents Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... iv Dedication....................................................................................................................................v Acknowledgements...................................................................................................................vi Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 Science, Controversy and the Devotional Artifact ........................................................... 4 Methods: A Social Cartography of Controversy ............................................................. 10 Theoretical Frameworks ....................................................................................................13 Outline of Chapters .............................................................................................................. 14 A Note on the Value of Unorthodox Ventures .................................................................17 Chapter One: Conceptualizing Scientific Controversy ...................................................... 18 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................18 Dissent in Science.................................................................................................................20 Controversy, the Public and Social Values ......................................................................36 Controversy as Social Drama ............................................................................................ 46 Closure and Post-closure ....................................................................................................49 Conclusion.............................................................................................................................53 Chapter Two: Capturing Artifacts: The Science of the Turin Shroud .............................54 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................54 Shroud Science: A Brief Historical Overview ..................................................................58 The Turin Shroud: From Devotional Object to Scientific Problem .............................62 Makeshift Places of Production: Turin and the Significance of the STURP Laboratory ....................................................67 Confronting Uncertainty: Reconfigurations in the STURP Laboratory .....................73 Discursive Representations of the Turin Shroud ...........................................................80 Conclusion 92 Chapter Three: Dissent, Controversy and the Contested Truth of the Artifact: The Great Blood Dispute .................................................................................................................96 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................96 "All this is Fiction": Enter the Dissenter ........................................................................ 100 Contests of Evidence.................................................................................................102 Constructing Antagonists: Dissent in Two Forums ..................................................... 115 Narrative Forums ...............................................................................................................122 Heller's Voyage.......................................................................................................... 122 Skeptical Antagonism ...............................................................................................128 McCrone's Judgment Day .........................................................................................131 Truths of, and Truthfulness to, the Artifact: The Intrinsic Value of Conflict .......... 138 Convergence, Divergence and the Relations of Conflict ............................................. 145 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................149 Chapter Four: Controversy and the Contested Path to Certainty: The Radiocarbon Dating Disputes .......................................................................................................................151 Introduction........................................................................................................................151
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