Artwork description:

The village of Happisburgh is situated on a cliff overhanging the sea on the North coast of Norfolk, England. Lifelong resident Jonathan Balls died at the age of 82 and in accordance with local lore, he being a person of ill-repute, was buried at a crossroad away from consecrated ground. In a murder investigation Norfolk Coroner's ordered his disinterment in 1846 and concluded that he had been poisoned by arsenic. He had been buried with a Bible, a plum pudding, a poker and a pair of coal tongues. It was widely assumed that he had used arsenic to poison several members of his family and others in the village before finally dying by the same means.

The matter of the dead being buried with objects dates back to at least the times of Ancient Egypt. It may be assumed that added artefacts are something to do with the nature or preoccupation of the deceased. One can ponder what any of it may mean but such things are usually a personal or family secret, never explained or to do with any formal belief or popular tradition.

Technical note
This print is pulled from a relief plate cut from rubber, a variation of letterpress. The completed edition made 6 copies. The print is on a sheet measuring 10x12 inches (254x305mm) and would fit straight into a standard 10x12 frame. All materials are of high quality and should present no keeping difficulty.

Materials used:

oil-based printing ink, cartridge paper

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