ABSTRACT
Past crime is currently enjoying popularity as a topic of creative and non-fiction writing, podcasts, television series and films. It can also provide a point of entry to historical understandings of the societies in which the crimes occurred. History offers a distinctive approach to past crime by placing it in its social, political, economic and cultural contexts and drawing out the meaning and significance of laws and law breaking. This introduction describes the structure of the book, with its general chapters, more specific essays and a selection of primary documents. Together, they provide a history of crime in Australia extending from the Dreaming to 1980 which is designed for students but will appeal to anyone who wants to follow their interest in crime into the deeper past.
