Dermatoglyphics

Dermatoglyphics (from Ancient Greek derma, "skin", and glyph, "carving") is the scientific study of fingerprints, lines, mounts and shapes of hands, as distinct from the superficially similar pseudoscience of palmistry.

Dermatoglyphics also refers to the making of naturally occurring ridges on certain body parts, namely palms, fingers, soles, and toes.

[1] 1823 marks the beginning of the scientific study of papillary ridges of the hands and feet, with the work of Jan Evangelista Purkyně.

In 1929, Harold Cummins and Charles Midlo M.D., together with others, published the influential book Fingerprints, Palms and Soles, a bible in the field of dermatoglyphics.

In 1945, Lionel Penrose, inspired by the works of Cummins and Midlo, conducted his own dermatoglyphic investigations as a part of his research into Down syndrome and other congenital medical disorders.