Treaty of the culture of the nopal and the education of the cochineal in the French colonies of America

Illustration of the cochineal insect (dactylopius coccus) and the cactus plant it inhabits (Opuntia), both endemic to Mexico and Latin America. The carminic acid found in the female insect's body provides a brilliant red dye used first by the native cultures before it became an important source of revenue for the Spanish empire.