Was the Shroud of Turin created by Gnostics? (Continued)

A reader writes:

Dear Dr. Roemer:

You start your slide show with a fairly good summary of some of the recent scientific discoveries about the shroud’s image. Then you quote some ancient documents in a rather untidy way, I think to tell us that the Image of Edessa is the Shroud of Turin. I have no issue with that.

Then come these exact words of yours, in order. The bullets are added.

• Gnostics thought you got to Heaven, not by being good, but by being bad.
• Gnostics may have been capable of crucifying someone in the 1st or 2nd century in order to create an imprint of his body.
• If so, the technique and skills they used to do this have been lost to history.
• There is evidence that there were a lot of Gnostics in Edessa in the 2nd and 3rd centuries.

That’s it? Gnostics may have been capable and if so the technique is lost and there were maybe a lot of Gnostics in Edessa. That’s it?  I find this no more compelling then speculations like ‘da Vinci did it’ or ‘it is an image of Jacques de Molay.’

Original posting with comments: Was the Shroud of Turin created by Gnostics?