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What is the Hungarian Pray Manuscript or Codex?
In the Budapest National Library there is an ancient codex, known commonly as the Hungarian Pray Manuscript or Pray Codex, named for György Pray (1723-1801), a Jesuit scholar who made the first detailed study of it.
This codex was written between 1192 and 1195. An illustration, one of five in the manuscript, shows Jesus being placed on his burial shroud, a shroud with the identical pattern of burn holes found on the Shroud. The artist has drawn the very unusual herringbone weave on the shroud and a number of other graphic characteristics consistent with the Shroud: Jesus is shown naked with his arms modestly folded at the wrists, the fingers are unusually long in appearance as they are on the Shroud, and there are no visible thumbs. There are no thumbs visible in the images of the man of the Shroud either. Forensic pathologists tell us that this makes sense since nails driven through the wrist would likely cause the thumbs to fold into the palms. In the drawing, there is also a clear mark on Jesus’ forehead where the most prominent 3-shaped bloodstain is found on the forehead of the man of the Shroud.
There can be little question that this illustrator of the Pray Codex, far removed from France – working at a time before the sacking of Constantinople by French knights, before the time given for the Shroud by carbon 14 dating, and before or the d’Arcis Memorandum – knew about the Shroud of Turin.
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© 2004 Daniel R. Porter, Bronxville, New York
