New Amsterdam: the Island at the Center of the World December 1, 2009

The original document sometimes referred to as "New York's birth certificate," which notes one of the best real estate deals of all time - the purchase of Manhattan for goods worth 60 guilders - highlights this major, new exhibit (Pieter Schaghen letter of 1626). The letter is owned by the Dutch National Archives. In addition to the Schaghen letter, more than 60 rare documents - many of which will be on display for the first time ever in the United States - will provide a vivid look at the beginning of New Amsterdam and the people who built it - including the document appointing Peter Stuyvesant as Director General of New Amsterdam, Henry Hudson's 1608 contract with the Dutch East India Company, drawings of inhabitants, maps of the region and more than 20 watercolor paintings.