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The remains of the ship, a steamer called La Unión, were found as early as 2017, but it is only now that Mexican archaeologists can confirm what it was used for: transporting enslaved people to Cuba.
Between 1855 and 1861, the ship transported the kidnapped Maya from Mexico to Cuba, where they were forced to work on sugar cane plantations.
According to the Mexican Anthropological Institute INAH, the slave ship is a unique find in the world, as it had not been found before. The finding further shows that the sale of slaves continued even after the forced movement of people from the Mayan people was declared illegal in Mexico in 1829.
“Each slave was sold to intermediaries for 25 pesos, and they in turn sold the slaves in Havana for up to 160 pesos for men and 120 pesos for women,” wrote INAH archaeologist Helena Barba Meinecke in a statement according to CNN.
“For researchers, the discovery is very relevant. It testifies to a dark chapter in the history of Mexico that must be recognized and studied more to teach us more about the scope,” INAH continued in the statement.
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