Frederick Zugibe

Frederick Thomas Zugibe (/ˈzʌɡɪbi/; born 1928) is an American expert in forensic medicine. He was the chief medical examiner of Rockland County, New York from 1969 to 2002. Zugibe is one of the United States' most prominent forensics experts, known for his research and books on forensic medicine as well as his crucifixion and Shroud of Turin studies.

Zugibe holds a Bachelor of Science, Master of Science (Anatomy/Electron Microscopy), and a PhD (Anatomy/ Histochemistry), and an M.D. degree. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Pathology in anatomic pathology and forensic pathology, and a diplomate of the American Board of Family Practice. Zugibe is an adjunct Associate Professor of Pathology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and is a Fellow of the College of American Pathologists, a Fellow of the American Academy of the Forensic Sciences, Forensic Pathology Section, and a member of the National Association of Medical Examiners.

He was formerly Director of Cardiovascular Research with the Veteran's Hospital in Pittsburgh, and is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, Fellow of the Council on Arteriosclerosis of the American Heart Association, Fellow of the New York Cardiological Society, and Member of the International Atherosclerosis Society.

Zugibe spent most of his career as the chief medical examiner of Rockland County, New York, appointed on August 15, 1969, to his retirement on December 31, 2002, and continuing as Acting Medical Examiner from January 1, 2003, to March 31, 2003, until his successor, Lone Thanning, was confirmed.

Zugibe is well known for his research into crucifixion and the Shroud of Turin, which modifies the theories of Pierre Barbet regarding crucifixion, and the Catholic Church regarding the Shroud of Turin. He has made numerous television appearances on these subjects, including How Jesus Died - the Final 18 Hours (Learning Channel and History Channel), The Shroud of Turin (CBC), Jesus, the Man (Discovery Channel), Son of God (BBC), Stigmata and the Shroud (In Search Of), The Stigmata (Learning Channel), The Shroud of Turin (60 Minutes, Australia), DaVinci and the Shroud (National Geographic), The Mystery of Jesus (CNN) and The Naked Archaeologist.

In 2003 Rockland County dedicated the Rockland County Medical Examiner's Office as the Dr. Frederick T. Zugibe Forensic Unit. A new disease, Glycoprotein Storage Disease, first described in the American Journal of Medicine by Zugibe and co-author Dr. Enid Gilbert, has been named the Zugibe-Gilbert Syndrome.