Mugshot

Here we see Petronella N(?)ieel, born in Amsterdam in 1855. She was 25 years old and a brothel keeper. She, like the other four women, was placed in front of the camera by the Amsterdam police. The mugshot shown here depicts the way inmates were photographed at the end of the nineteenth century. Before the advent of photography, it was sometimes difficult to find out if individuals had crossed the line before. The advent of photography made identifying people easy.. Mugshots, therefore, became a must for personal registration.

From 1855 onwards there were reports in Dutch newspapers that the police in London started to use the daguerreotype, the precursor of the camera, in their criminal investigations. See in Weekblad van het regt “First attempts at justice photography in the UK, 1855” (daguerreotype) Soon this idea blew over to the Netherlands. For example, Petronella was photographed in a studio that was most likely located inside the police station. Cameras were too heavy to transport at that time, and it was convenient to have a fixed location to photograph the suspects in good light.

Not every mugshot is exactly the same. For example, some photos show large dresses and beautiful furniture, probably belonging to wealthier suspects. Whether they provided these photos themselves or the police had other props to take pictures with depending on social class, is not clear. Still, the difference is very striking. Did these people want to stand out from the usual convicts by having this kind of extravagant photo taken?

When the police headquarters located on the corner of Spinhuissteeg were remodeled in 1896, a small photo studio and darkroom were realized on a mezzanine. A photograph of this studio from 1903 has been preserved. Mugshots of inmates were made while they sat on a chair, or stood next to it. This can also be seen in the photographs of the women Johanna van der Meiden and Matje Zwitser.