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Historian says Miguel Hidalgo sculpture in San Antonio may have contested wartime provenance
Summary
Miguel García Audelo told attendees that a Hidalgo sculpture in San Antonio was made by a student of Auguste Rodin and suggested Nazi-era networks and local actors were involved in its placement; the presenter framed these as archival assertions that were not corroborated during the event.
During his lecture, Miguel García Audelo described the provenance of a Miguel Hidalgo sculpture he said stands outside UNAM San Antonio and asserted connections between local intermediaries and wartime Nazi networks. "Y aunque la estatua de Miguel Hidalgo haya sido ahí puesta por los nazis," the presenter said, framing the claim as part of a broader narrative about transnational ties during the 1920s–1940s.
García Audelo named individuals he said were involved: Francisco (and Gustavo) Aguilar, Preston Luis Anderson (described by the speaker as having represented Bexar County in the Texas legislature between 1926 and 1941), Congressman Maurice Maverick, and Gonzalo N. Santos. The presenter also stated the sculpture had been made by a pupil of Auguste Rodin. These assertions were presented without on-the-record corroboration at the event and should be treated as claims for further research rather than established fact.
