Forti. Ernesta. 45 (ou 46) ans, née à Lodi (Italie). Laitière. Anarchiste. 27/2/94.
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
2005.100.375.169
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 19th century, French criminologist Alphonse Bert revolutionized police work with his anthropometric system, known as *bertillonage*. This poignant 1894 albumen silver print from a glass negative captures Ernesta Forti, 45- or 46-year-oldmaid born in Lodi, Italy, simply as an "anarchiste" (anarchist). Taken on February 27, 4, the small portrait (10.5 x 7 cm) is part of Bertillon's mugshot series, designed for precise criminal identification through measurements, profiles, and full-face views. Bertillon's work emerged amid France's *Belle Époque*, a period of social upheaval marked ...
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 ...