'The Marsh Test'
Sarah Bodman
Visual Studies Workshop, Rochester, New York, USA, November 2002
Marie Lafarge was found guilty of poisoning her husband, in Paris, in 1840. Her trial was the first publicly documented use of James Marsh's highly
sensitive test for the detection of arsenic in natural compounds. Her husband had died of a gastric ailment in January 1840 after eating a slice of his
new wife's cake. His maid testified that she had noticed Marie adding a white powder to his drinks, Marie claimed that this was gum arabic, but in
court, evidence was produced that she had purchased arsenic at least twice from the local chemist.

The book is produced as a series of letters which appear to have been written by Marie Lafarge to her mother, and mention the Marsh Test. The
folio also includes two fictitious print outs of photographs of her and her husband, and two diagrams of the Marsh Test; one etching which shows
the original format of the test and one print which shows the enlarged flour particles. The true version of the events is included at the end of the
book, inserted behind the image of the blue ink bottle attached to the inside back cover.

Edition of 25, 16 x 19 cms. A series of loose-leaf pages, tied with ribbon inside the folio. The contents consist of: 9 pages of facsimile handwritten
letters, one typed letter, two flysheets, one image with text on reverse, one note, one colour diagram and one etching of The Marsh Test diagram.
Printed on Velin Aches Blanc and Somerset Satin papers. The edition of was produced through Photoshop™ and Quark Express™ using an
Epson 3000 and an Epson 2000 printer, scanned from handwritten texts. The etching was also produced as an edition of 25 within the book.
Bound in a blue buckram folio by Bristol Bound Bookbinding, with silver tooled title.

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