Bertillon system

System of classifying individuals for identification, invented by Alphonse Bertillon (1853-1914). It consisted of measurements of certain parts of the human body that do not change in adulthood. The method was replaced with the development of fingerprint identification.

Bertillon claimed the measurements made it possible to classify individuals and identify them without fail for the rest of their lives. Bertillon's system was adopted for police purposes in many countries.

The essential measurements included length of head, breadth of head, length of middle finger, length of left foot, and length of the forearm. Height, length of little finger, and colour of eyes were also observed. The measurements had to be so accurate, and required such carefully trained observers, that the process of ‘Bertillonizing’ was slow and expensive. Since the slightest mistake might invalidate a whole record, it was necessary to take the mean of at least three measurements.