Conceived as a space for reflection on the Indigenous heritage of the Mexican nation, Mexico’s National Museum of Anthropology has been honored with the 2025 Princess of Asturias Award for Concord.
The prestigious award was granted to the Mexican institution in recognition of its status as one of the most important museums in Latin America and a global benchmark in the study of humanity, due to its commitment to education, research, and the preservation of cultural heritage.
Meeting in Oviedo, the jury for the 2025 Princess of Asturias Award for Concord — composed of 30 members and chaired by Adrián Barbón Rodríguez — praised the museum as the heir to a long-standing tradition of defending and preserving a vital part of humanity’s anthropological heritage. They emphasized that the museum also embodies the identity of a great nation in which its people see themselves reflected.
In response to the award, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo said during her morning press conference on Wednesday, June 4, that this recognition marks a first step for Spain in acknowledging the excesses committed during the colonial conquest.
“Well, maybe this is a beginning for them to consider offering an apology, right? It’s a gesture by the Spanish Crown to recognize the Museum of Anthropology, so they’ve taken the first step. I hope they continue this process of fully acknowledging the indigenous peoples, the great civilizations of the past, the people of today, and the atrocities committed during the so-called Spanish conquest,” said the President.
Living History
Mexico’s National Museum of Anthropology (MNA) was created in 1940 when part of the collection from the then National Museum of Archaeology, History, and Ethnography was relocated to Chapultepec Castle.
In 1960, the Mexican government approved the construction of a new space — the current building in Chapultepec Forest — which was inaugurated in 1964 and quickly garnered international attention as a symbol of development, modernity, and innovation. Its mission is to research, preserve, exhibit, and disseminate Mexico’s most significant archaeological and ethnographic collections.
The museum is part of the National Institute of Anthropology and History’s (INAH) museum network. It is supported by a board of trustees that backs its activities, particularly restoration and conservation projects, through fundraising efforts involving private donors, national and international companies, memberships, the MNA Store, and events.
In 2024, the MNA reached its highest attendance ever, with over three million visitors exploring its galleries.
In a statement, the Princess of Asturias Foundation highlighted the museum’s close ties to Spain and Spanish culture, noting that its galleries also include objects from the colonial period, which reflect the fusion of Indigenous and Spanish cultures and the historically reciprocal relationship between them — one that has enriched both traditions.
With more than 20 galleries and over 45,000 square meters of space — 30,000 of which are dedicated to exhibitions — the National Museum of Anthropology is the largest in the country. Over nearly six decades, its collections have grown to 250,000 pieces from across Mexico, with around 8,000 on display at any given time.
Since 1972, with the passage of the Federal Law on Monuments and Archaeological, Artistic, and Historical Zones, the museum’s collections have been sourced exclusively from INAH archaeological projects and the repatriation of artifacts from abroad.
Among its iconic pieces are Xochipilli, or the Lord of Flowers (Mexica culture), the jade funeral mask and burial objects of the Mayan emperor Pakal, and the Bat God mask (Zapotec art).
In July 2017, the museum received for safekeeping and proper preservation Naia — the oldest directly dated and genetically intact prehistoric female skeleton in the Americas — discovered in 2007 and estimated to be 13,000 years old.
Several of the museum’s pieces have traveled the world on loan for exhibitions in countries such as the Netherlands, Russia, and Australia.
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Mexican Press Agency is part of ALMA, which is dedicated to news and information about Mexico and Mexicans in the United States and is a fiscally sponsored project of Social Focus, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Redwood City, California.
