You may recall our previous post on the Bertillon System.
The Bertillon System was invented by French criminologist Alphonse Bertillon in 1879. It was a technique for describing individuals on the basis of a catalogue of physical measurements including standing height, sitting height (length of trunk and head), distance between fingertips with arms outstretched, amongst other characteristics.
For thirty years, the Bertillon System was generally accepted as the leading method of criminal identification. With the advent of fingerprinting, use of the Bertillon System eventually began to decline.
We are pleased to share with you the front (above) and back (below) of one of the Bertillon cards in our collection.
