7 Quick Facts about Fingerprints

1. Some ancient civilizations used fingerprints as a way of sealing or signing official documents.
2. No two fingerprints are exactly alike
3. Has served all governments worldwide for the past 100 years
4. Fingerprints are the basis for criminal history foundation at every police agency on Earth
5. Remains the most commonly used forensic evidence worldwide
6. Tens of thousands are added to fingerprint databases daily in America
7. Worldwide, fingerprints gathered from crime "scenes lead to more suspects and generate more evidence in court than all other forensic techniques combined"

http://www.onin.com/fp/fphistory.html
http://odec.ca/projects/2004/fren4j0/public_html/history_of_fingerprinting.htm