More than eight decades after they were first seized, dozens of boxes containing Nazi propaganda and materials have been rediscovered in the basement of Argentina’s Supreme Court, the court announced on Sunday.
A total of 83 boxes were found during preparations for a forthcoming Supreme Court museum, sparking renewed interest in a mysterious World War II-era episode. According to the court’s historical records, the boxes were originally sent by the German embassy in Tokyo and arrived in Argentina in June 1941 aboard the Japanese steamship Nan-a-Maru.
At the time, the shipment triggered concern among Argentine officials who feared its contents might jeopardise the country’s wartime neutrality. German diplomats reportedly claimed the boxes contained only personal belongings. However, a customs inspection of five randomly selected boxes revealed Nazi propaganda, photographs, postcards, and thousands of notebooks linked to the Nazi Party. A federal judge promptly ordered the materials confiscated and handed over to the Supreme Court. What happened to the boxes after that remained unclear—until now.
“Upon opening one of the boxes, we identified material intended to consolidate and propagate Adolf Hitler’s ideology in Argentina during the Second World War,” the court said in an official statement.
The rediscovered boxes have now been relocated to a secure room, and the Buenos Aires Holocaust Museum has been invited to assist in their preservation, documentation, and study. Historians hope the materials may shed light on lesser-known aspects of the Holocaust, including possible international financing operations linked to the Nazi regime.
Argentina maintained neutrality in the war until 1944, only declaring war on Germany and Japan in 1945. Between 1933 and 1954, around 40,000 Jews fleeing Nazi persecution immigrated to Argentina, which today hosts Latin America’s largest Jewish population.
The Supreme Court’s discovery adds a striking chapter to Argentina’s complex wartime legacy and its later role as a haven for both Jewish refugees and former Nazi officials.
Melissa Enoch
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