Zes portretten van dieven (bank sneaks) before 1886

This anonymous work from before 1886, titled “Zes portretten van dieven (bank sneaks),” showcases six mugshots of men suspected of bank robbery. The work was likely created for a newspaper or police publication to circulate amongst the public as part of the investigation into the crime. The individual portraits, arranged in a grid of two rows of three, are presented in black and white and are each accompanied by a name and details about their suspected crime. This type of image, a prime example of the mugshot genre, was common in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, serving both as a visual record of alleged criminals and a tool for public safety.