Rey. Claude. 23 ans, né le 24/5/70 au Creusot (Saone & Loire). Ébéniste. Anarchiste. 12/3/94.
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
2005.100.375.356
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the late 19th century, French criminologist Alphonse Bert revolutionized forensic science with his "anthropometric system," a methodical approach to criminal identification that paired precise body measurements with standardized photographs. This 1894 albumen silver print a glass negative captures Claude Rey, a 23-year-old cabinetmakerébéniste) from Creusot in Saône-et-Loire,ly labeled as an "Anarchiste." Taken on March 12, 1894, amid France's turbulent era of anarchist unrest—including bombings and political assassinations—it exemplifies Bertillon's mugshot technique: a small, clinical por...
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 ...