Researchers have unearthed a previously unknown piece of American lore: a parchment copy of the Declaration of Independence, the New York Times reported.

According to two Harvard scholars, the newly-discovered document "really shifts our understanding in how the nationalist position emerged," Harvard government professor Danielle Allen told the Times. "That is really the key riddle of the American system," she added.

The document is not an official government copy, but it is the only known handwritten Declaration remaining from that era, with the exception of the original Declaration which is preserved and displayed at the National Archives in Washington, DC. It is believed the copy, discovered in Britain, was created in the 1780s.

The most popular theory is that it came to England because it "passed into the possession of the third Duke of Richmond, a supporter of American independence, possibly through Thomas Paine," the Times said. He was known at the time as the "Radical Duke" because of his views.

When Allen first came across the document, it was in an online database for copies of the Declaration called the Declaration Resources Project. After viewing a picture of it, Allen decided to travel to the UK to see it in person.

"I was on pins and needles," Allen recalled of the moment the document was being unfolded and shown to her. "I thought we would turn it over and the back would say, 'Ha, ha, we fooled you!'"

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io