Martineau. Jules, Louis. 30 ans, né à Angers (Maine & Loire). Peintre en bâtiment. Anarchiste. 3/7/94.

Art Historical Context

This poignant 1894 albumen silver print by Alphonse Bertillon captures Jules Louis Martineau, 30-year-old house from Angers, France, starkly labeled as an "Anarchiste." Measuring just 10.5 x 7 cm, this intimate mugshot from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Gilman Collection exemplifies Bertillon's pioneering work as a forensic photographer for the Paris Prefecture of Police. During a turbulent era of social unrest and anarchist activities in fin-de-siècle France—marked by bombings and political trials—such images documented suspects with clinical precision. Bertillon revolutionized criminal identification with his "anthropometric system," or Bertillonage, featuring standardized frontal and profile portraits alongside meticulous physical descriptions. Printed from a glass negative, the albumen process yields rich tonal depth and fine detail, bridging artistic portraiture with scientific documentation. Though small in scale, these photographs carry immense historical weight, transforming the human face into a tool for justice. Today, Martineau's portrait offers a window into late 19th-century radicalism and the birth of modern forensics, reminding us how photography shifted from art to evidence in an age of upheaval. A testament to Bertillon's enduring legacy, it humanizes the era's outcasts while showcasing photography's dual role as both empathetic portrait and impartial record.

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 ...