ABSTRACT
This chapter covers indented impressions, fingerprints, damage, and other marks that are incidental to the document's intended purpose but indicate its history. When writing is made on a piece of paper resting on others, it will leave impressions on the lower pieces. A letter written on a pad of writing paper may begin with the address of the writer, and the impressions of this will remain on the paper underneath. In most cases, some of the impressions are too weak to be read clearly, and some patience is required before all that can be read are identified. An entirely different technique, which does not rely on a visual examination and does not damage the document, is the electrostatic method of detection. A number of methods are available for the detection of fingermarks on documents; some are destructive, so that any evidence from the document is lost, and others are less so.
