Mugshots
Underworld
Behind the scenes: How to read a ‘special’
Around the world, police forces followed established conventions when taking mugshots. But Sydney police in the 1920s did things differently.
Captured: Portraits of Crime, Arthur Astill
Arthur Astill, a 16 year old labourer from Orange in central west NSW, was photographed at Dubbo Gaol on 24 January 1893 while awaiting trial for murder
WW1
Sensational car chase
John Talbot Wright was arrested on 11 September 1920 after a sensational car chase through city streets
WW1
Returned from active service
In July 1921 James Arthur Banfield was arrested by Sydney police, photographed and charged on three counts of larceny
WW1
Fallen hero of Flanders
In 1922, petty criminal Arthur Ernest Noonan was arrested by Sydney police to face charges of conspiracy to defraud
The Hawk strikes again!
During the 1920s, inner Sydney was overrun with gangsters looking to make a name for themselves – sometimes literally
Underworld
Flappers
The flapper was an alluring vision of sophistication and freedom for young women globally
Captured: Portraits of Crime 1870-1930, Sarah Clifford
Sarah Clifford, born in Jamaica c.1833, was a former convict and known pickpocket in both Tasmania and NSW. She was photographed numerous times at Darlinghurst and Biloela gaols between 1872 and 1910
Underworld
The Roaring Twenties
The 1920s heralded the brave new world that emerged from the devastation of World War I