[dangus]

... cause, you know... lepers always got buried in the finest cloths available.

Let’s not forget that Joseph of Arimathea likely provided the shroud. Joseph was from the Sanhedrin. He probably got a burial shroud like the Sanhedrin would have used. I’m guessing that the Sanhedrin burial shrouds may have been a bit higher quality than lepers’ burial shrouds.

And given the response to the woman anointing him with oil, I don’t think Joseph would have said, “Wait... I can’t use this shroud; it’s too nice... I’ll go find a beggar’s shroud.”

[Between the Lines]

Here is a link to the peer review article originally published on this subject: Molecular Exploration of the First-Century Tomb of the Shroud in Akeldama, Jerusalem

There is not much about the cloth itself except for this:

However, a number of indications – the location and size of the tomb, the type of textiles used as shroud wrappings, the clean state of the hair – suggest that the shrouded individual was a fairly affluent member of society in Jerusalem and that tuberculosis crossed social boundaries in the first century C.E.

It is possible that the shroud was of a simple weave because it was made of a high quality (expensive) textile.

The article you posted is full of speculation not backed by scientific evidence. Note the use of the term investigators instead of using scientists.

a first-century C.E. shrouded man found in a tomb on the edge of the Old City of Jerusalem, which also revealed the earliest proven case of leprosy.

Note also that this is not the earliest proven case of leprosy, but instead the earliest found in Israel.

[reaganaut]

I am interested in this burial for a couple of reasons, mainly my research interest in leprosy and death.

However, I completely disagree that a comparison of a shroud of a leper AUTOMATICALLY assumes that it would be the same type/weave of the Shroud of Jesus.

I agree with dangus that the burial shroud of Jesus was probably buried in a finer cloth, due to Joseph of Aramathea wealth and status. The Biblical accounts of the burial, (oil and spices) also show a more wealthy burial for Jesus, than ANY leper (who were outcasts and considered “the living dead”) would have had.