Augendre. Ernest. 37 ans, né à St-Pierre le Moutier (Nièvre). Maçon. Anarchiste. 1/3/94.
Medium
Albumen silver print from glass negative
Dimensions
10.5 x 7 x 0.5 cm (4 1/8 x 2 3/4 x 3/16 in.) each
Classification
Photographs
Department
Photographs
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gilman Collection, Museum Purchase, 2005
Accession Number
2005.100.375.9
Tags
Art Historical Context
In 1894, pioneering forensic photographer Alphonse Bert captured this intimate portrait of Ernest Augendre a 37-year-old from St-Pierre-le-Moutier in France's Nièvre region, labeled simply as an "anarchiste." Bertillon, chief of the Paris Prefecture of Police's Identification Service, revolutionized criminal documentation with his anthropometric system—known as Bertillonage—combining precise body measurements with standardized frontal and profile photographs. This small albumen silver print from glass negative exemplifies his methodical approach, transforming mugshots into tools of justice ami...
About the Artist
Alphonse Bertillon · 1853–1914
Alphonse Bertillon (1853–1914) was a pioneering French photographer whose work revolutionized forensic documentation, transforming police identification into a precise visual science. Born in Paris on April 22, 1853, he was the son of medical professor and statistician Louis-Adolphe Bertillon and the younger brother of demographer Jacques Bertillon. Lacking formal higher education after expulsion ...