SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- The Mexican Consulate in New York City has recovered a priceless document signed in 1554 that detailed how the Spanish planned to colonize, govern and account for Indigenous people in the Americas.
The Proclamación de Huejotzingo was stolen in 1970 from a museum in Mexico and then resold over the years in the international black market for antiquities and art.
It was signed by Fray Juan de Alameda, one of the original architects to many buildings, convents and churches in Mexico. The document also includes signatures from several illustrious figures who ruled Mexico at that time.
It is said to be the foundation for how the Spanish administered Mexico and how they tried to integrate indigenous people into every day life.
The official paper was found in March 2024 at John F. Kennedy Airport in a piece of luggage.
It took several months for the Mexican government to prove the document's historical value and that it had been stolen.
On Wednesday, it was turned over to the Mexican Consulate in New York City, which thanked U.S. Customs and Border Protection for identifying and recovering the manuscript.