Mexico recovers 1527 document signed by Hernán Cortés stolen 30 years ago

Mexico has successfully recovered a priceless 16th-century document signed by Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés, which had been stolen three decades ago. The document, a payment order dated February 20, 1527, was officially handed over to Mexican officials by the FBI in the United States.

This repatriation marks the culmination of a four-year effort that began when Mexican authorities learned the historical artifact was slated for auction in the U.S. A complaint was filed with the Attorney General's Office, supported by evidence proving the document's Mexican patrimony. The historical folio was secured at the Mexican embassy in the U.S. last August.

According to the Mexican Foreign Ministry and the General Archive of the Nation (AGN), the document belongs to a collection of papers signed by Cortés, which were originally removed from volume 362, file 203 of the Hospital de Jesús collection. Mexican authorities highlighted the cooperative work with the FBI as crucial in their ongoing efforts to return national heritage to the country.

"Mexico's documentary heritage is not sold; it is protected, preserved, and honored as an essential part of our history," the ministry stated. This recovery aligns with a broader strategy initiated during the previous administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and continued by current President Claudia Sheinbaum, focusing on legal actions to restore Mexican cultural assets held illicitly abroad.