UNESCO recognizes Historical Archive preserved at Tec Zacatecas campus

The Historical Archive of the Royal Treasury of Zacatecas, which is preserved at the Tec’s Zacatecas campus, has been recognized as a Memory of the World by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

UNESCO awarded this recognition to Sociedad de Amigos de Zacatecas, A.C. (Friends of Zacatecas Association) and also to Tec de Monterrey for preserving the Historical Archive of the Royal Treasury of Zacatecas, which is kept on gratuitous loan at the Zacatecas campus.

Ana Lucía Macías Chiu, National Director of Cultural Heritage at Tecnológico de Monterrey, and Manuel Sescosse, President of Sociedad de Amigos de Zacatecas, A.C., received the recognition.

According to Ana Lucía Macías, the institution is proud to look after this collection of documents that are kept at Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Zacatecas campus.

“Helping to preserve documents about Mexico’s heritage provides recognition of the great cultural wealth of our country.

It highlights the importance of knowing our identity, which allows us to raise awareness, combine observations, and learn about our history, present, and future.”

The Historical Archive has more than 8,800 volumes, dating from colonial times to the early decades of the 20th century. They record the two main activities that were carried out in the city of Zacatecas, surrounding areas, and the North of Mexico: mining and commerce.

These documents have been kept at Tecnológico de Monterrey’s Zacatecas campus since 1992 and form part of the Collection of Sociedad de Amigos de Zacatecas, A.C.

Memory of the World in Zacatecas

The Memory of the World Program (MOW) is an international initiative that has been promoted and coordinated by UNESCO since 1992.

It aims to ensure the preservation of the most important documentary heritage and access to this by everyone in the world, as well as raising awareness of conservation among the member states of UNESCO.

Recognition of the Historical Archive of the Royal Treasure of Zacatecas was announced last March by Catherine Bloch, Chair of the Mexican Committee of UNESCO’s Memory of the World, who during her visit to the Zacatecas campus said:

“I congratulate all those who have helped make it possible for the Historical Archive to be here at Tec de Monterrey’s Zacatecas campus, for all the work they’ve done to maintain, catalog, classify and digitalize it; without a doubt, you’ve done a great job.”

Judith Ruíz-Godoy Rivera, National Dean of Tecnológico de Monterrey’s School of Humanities and Education added:

“It’s not enough to just say thank you. Our commitment empowers us, and makes us visible, not only in Zacatecas but also nationally and internationally. Thank you very much for this recognition.”

Alfredo de Alba Ramírez, General Director of the Zacatecas campus celebrated this recognition, saying:

“The Tec is very proud to be co-responsible for preserving the Historical Archive of the Royal Treasury of Zacatecas, as it contributes significantly to the construction of Zacatecan history.”

On June 21, Tec de Monterrey’s National Department of Cultural Heritage organized the talk “The Importance of the Memory of the World Register in Mexico,” which was given by Catherine Bloch from UNESCO to celebrate this recognition that contributes to the construction of the history of Zacatecas and Mexico.

“I congratulate all those who’ve participated in the Historical Archive, without a doubt they’ve done a great job.”- Catherine Bloch

Four centuries of history

The Historical Archive of the Royal Treasury of Zacatecas is made up of more than 8,800 documents that kept administration and collection records of the Royal Treasury for Zacatecas, surrounding areas, and the North of Mexico.

This collection includes data on activities such as mining and trade generated from the end of the 16th century to the first three decades of the 20th century.

This archive is important because it records the social and cultural interplay generated around the mining of silver.

In the 1970s, this archive was recovered after being sold to a pulp mill specializing in the manufacture of shoe boxes in León, Guanajuato. Rescued by a group of collectors, it became the property of the Clemence Trust of the University of Michigan, in the United States.

In the 1990s, the university donated the archive to Sociedad Amigos de Zacatecas A.C., who then gave it on gratuitous loan to the Zacatecas campus for its preservation.

Ana Lucía Macías said: “The addition of the Historical Archive of the Royal Treasury of Zacatecas 1576-1936 to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register for Mexico motivates us and reinforces our commitment to continue working for the conservation, physical and digital preservation, dissemination, and access to these valuable collections.”

Since it was received at the Zacatecas campus, the Historical Archive has been safeguarded, organized, and cataloged so that it can be reviewed by the general public, as part of the actions implemented by Tecnológico de Monterrey’s National Department of Cultural Heritage.

Digital preservation work was recently carried out on this collection of documents, and they were published on the RITEC open resources platform, which allows them to be consulted by anyone with Internet access.

Dr. Mabel Mauricio, the coordinator of the archive, said that the plan for the collection after being digitalized is to link with institutions at national and international levels and promote academic collaboration by offering a better space for people to consult it.

This archive is currently located in the “Manuel Sescosse” library on the Zacatecas campus and can be consulted in person by requesting an appointment with Dr. Mabel Mauricio via email to mabel@tec.mx, through the RITEC platform: https:// repository.tec.mx/handle/11285/636332, or at bit.ly/ArchivoZAC.

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