A new written document — the autopsy report of Princess Schwarzenberg — finds its way into Archduchess Marianne’s growing collection of evidence. According to the report, the Princess suffered from an abdominal tumour ‘the size of a child’s head’. This was very likely the main cause of her prolonged illness and, ultimately, her death.
Curiously, medical examination was not the primary purpose for performing an autopsy on a member of the aristocracy. The practical reason for removing the heart and intestines was to preserve the condition of the body during transportation. Yet the social aspect of the procedure was equally important. By the 18th century, evisceration, embalming, long-distance transportation and delayed burial were costly practices associated with high social status — a way for noble families to display their wealth. Through the fragmentation of their corpses and the dispersal of their remains, high-ranking individuals expressed their loyalty to several significant sites.
For Marianne, the contents of the report appear to explain everything — even questions she has not yet thought to ask. As she gathers the pieces of her knowledge together, it seems, at last, that the case of Princess Schwarzenberg is solved and may safely be set aside.
Or could it?
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