Argentina’s former first lady Eva Peron died of cervical cancer on July 26, 1952, aged 33. Her embalmed body was kept after her death and became central to a 16-year journey following the 1955 military coup that removed her husband, President Juan Peron. The new authorities removed her body from a planned memorial in central Buenos Aires, fearing it could become a symbol of Peronist resistance.

Spanish anatomist Pedro Ara preserved the body using paraffin and glycerine injections. More than two million people viewed Eva Peron’s coffin over 14 days at the Congress building, reflecting her continued public support. The body was reportedly moved between locations in Buenos Aires, including military intelligence facilities, before being buried under an assumed name in Milan, Italy, in 1957.

In 1971, a new Argentine government agreed to return the body to Juan Peron in exile in Madrid. After Juan Peron died in 1974, it was returned to Buenos Aires and restored. In October 1976, Eva Peron was placed in a highly secure crypt, five metres underground, with concealed doors intended to prevent another theft.