Elizabeth Riordan, MA
Before CSI and forensic identification, and even before fingerprinting, we had Bertillon. In 1883 French police officer Alphonse Bertillon introduced a new criminal identification system using body measurements to easily identify repeat offenders.
While being used to help identify criminals scientifically, Anthropometry had been around in the criminal justice world in several forms prior. During the early and mid-19th century, phrenologists were spreading the word that measuring the human skull could reveal more about a person than what we see on the outside. Phrenology, though short-lived and declared a pseudoscience today, had a lasting impact on criminology.
Riordan will highlight a collection of these Bertillon cards, on loan from the State Historical Society, from the Fort Madison Penitentiary. Using these cards and other sources from Special Collections and the John Martin Rare Book Room, she will explore history’s take on measuring up a criminal.
