Bouchenez. Adolphe. 36 ans, 27/2/94. (En rouge barrant la fiche: "Transféré à Mazas. À faire extraire").

Art Historical Context

This poignant albumen silver print from a glass negative created by Alphonseillon in 1894, captures Adolphe Bouchenez, aged 36, as part of the pioneering French system of criminal identification known as *bertillonage*. Titled with meticulous detail—"Bouchenez. Adolphe. 36 ans, 27/2/94"—and struck through in red with the note "Transféré Mazas. À faireire" (Transferred to Mazas. To be extracted), it documents a suspect's transfer to the infamous Paris prison. Measuring just 10.5 x 7 cm, this compact card from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Gilman Collection evokes the clinical precision of late 19th-century law enforcement. Bertillon, chief of the Paris Prefecture of Police's Identification Service, revolutionized forensics by combining anthropometric measurements with standardized photography—full-face and profile views against measured scales. Before fingerprints dominated, his method identified recidivists with remarkable accuracy, influencing global policing. This photograph exemplifies his scientific approach, where the albumen process yielded sharp, detailed images ideal for archival records. Beyond its technical innovation, the work reflects broader cultural anxieties about crime, identity, and social control in Belle Époque France. As visitors, imagine flipping through these "judicial portraits," humanizing the era's shadowy underbelly while marveling at photography's shift from art to evidentiary tool.

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 ...