Calligraphy experts study the science of calligraphy, while handwriting analysts examine unique characteristics of an individual’s handwriting. Forensic document analysts use their expertise to verify authorship and document authenticity, but their conclusions may not always be admissible in court. Graphology, which analyzes handwriting to find clues about personality and character traits, is seen as more of an art than a science by scientific handwriting analysts.
A calligraphy expert is a person who studies the science of calligraphy. When studying handwriting samples, a handwriting analyst relies on the belief that each person’s handwriting is as unique as a snowflake or a fingerprint; people usually learn to write by learning the same letters with similar methods, but their writing changes as they grow with individual changes and flourishes. A manuscript specialist may be asked to work with questionable documents because the status of the documents is in doubt. Authorship may need to be verified, or staff may need to know the authenticity of documents, seeking confirmation that documents have not been forged.
Initial examinations of documents by a handwriting specialist include determining which characteristics of the handwriting sample are due to which of the various calligraphy methods the subject was taught and which characteristics belong only to the individual whose handwriting is being examined, the latter being the best option. importance in questionable documents. This facet of the job was used to help convict bank robbers and kidnappers, with one of the most famous cases of the 20th century being the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby in Hopewell, New Jersey, in 1932. The kidnapper sent over a dozen notes in search of ransom and authorities were left with the task of analyzing the handwriting on the notes to see if it matched the man they suspected of the crime.
A handwriting expert concluded that all the ransom notes were written by the same person and also concluded that the suspect, Bruno Richard Hauptmann, had written them, but in recent years doubt has been cast on the process used to obtain a sample of Bruno’s handwriting. of Hauptmann for comparison. Since then, the approved method of collecting a handwriting sample in similar situations has been changed for better supervision. In another type of case, a handwriting expert can help determine whether a celebrity’s autograph is genuine or whether someone who purchased the autograph was deceived by a forgery.
Forensic document analysts invest a lot of time in their examination of handwriting samples and tend to be meticulous and thorough. Science, however, is not infallible because it is based on subjective analysis and is not as reliable as a fingerprint or DNA. One development that aims to make the handwriting analysis process less subjective is the Forensic Information System for Handwriting, a computer-driven analysis. The conclusions of a handwriting expert are not always admissible in court.
A forensic handwriting examiner is not the same as a graphologist, who also studies handwriting samples, but with a different goal in mind. Graphology analyzes handwriting in order to find clues about a person’s personality and character traits. Scientific handwriting analysts see graphology as more of an art than a science. Some people look at handwriting as pure fluff, but some employers use it to track applicants, and sometimes law enforcement even uses it to identify a suspect.
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