- Gundelia
image_width = 250px
image_caption = "Gundelia tournefortii"
regnum =Plant ae
divisio = Magnoliophyta
classis =Magnoliopsida
ordo =Asterales
familia =Asteraceae
tribus = Lactuseae
genus = "Gundelia"
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = "G. rosea"
"G. tenuisecta"
"G. tournefortii"The gundelia is a spiny, thistle-like flowering
plant of thegenus "Gundelia" L. in the sunflower family (Asteraceae ).They occur in the semi-desert areas of
Armenia ,Anatolia ,Palestine ,Iraq andIran .A member of this genus,
tumbleweed "G. tournefortii" came under the spotlights in 1998, when itspollen grains were found in abundance on theShroud of Turin . This fact served a claim in establishing the provenance of the shroud. It has been suggested that this spiny plant may be the "crown of thorns ", symbol of humiliation ofJesus . More likely it was Christ's thorn jujube ("Zizyphus spina-christi") or maybe both.References
* Karis, P. O., Eldenäs, P. & Källersjö, M.: New evidence for the systematic position of Gundelia L. – Taxon 50: 105–114. 2001. – ISSN 0040-0262.
External links
* [http://www.spiritrestoration.org/Archeology/Shroud%20of%20Turin.htm Shroud of Turin reveals images of two crowns of thorns]
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