A priceless manuscript page signed by Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés in 1527 has been returned to Mexico by the FBI, nearly five centuries after its creation and decades after its disappearance from the nation’s archives, AP News reports.
The document, bearing Cortés’ signature dated February 20, 1527, was recovered through a multinational investigation involving the FBI’s Art Crime Team, New York Police Department, and US Department of Justice. Special Agent Jessica Dittmer confirmed the artifact’s significance:
“Pieces like this are considered protected cultural property and represent valuable moments in Mexico’s history, so this is something that the Mexicans have in their archives for the purpose of understanding history better,” she said.
Archivists at Mexico’s General Archive of the Nation discovered 15 missing pages from their Cortés manuscript collection during microfilming in 1993. Authorities believe the theft occurred between 1985 and 1993.
Following Mexico’s formal request for assistance last year, the FBI traced the document through multiple private collections in the United States. Dittmer noted the manuscript’s historical context: Cortés signed it six years after conquering the Aztec empire in 1521. Due to the document having “changed hands various times over the years,” no criminal charges will be filed.
This marks the second Cortés document repatriated by the FBI, following a 16th-century letter returned in 2023. The collaborative recovery underscores ongoing efforts to restore cultural heritage displaced during periods of inadequate archival security.
