The testamentary wills of the Professor of Mineralogy Donato García Negueruela (1779-1855)

The recent discovery of the Testamentary Protocols of Donato García Negueruela (1779-1855), priest and professor of Mineralogy at the Royal Cabinet of Natural History (RGHN) and at the Central University, preserved in the Historical Protocols Archive of Madrid (AHPM), serves to shed light on various aspects of his life and fill the numerous gaps regarding his person. These absences are partly due to the limited scientific output that the professor had throughout his teaching career. Donato García drafted two closed testaments, leaving a testamentary memory. The first, dated 1825, constitutes a declaration of poverty. The second testament is from 1849. The testamentary memory, recorded after the professor’s death, consists of three handwritten sheets, written on both sides, including the date and signature. The analysis of these documentary sources reveals numerous aspects related to his religious condition. The inventory of assets confirms his social position and hints at his modest and noble personality. It also allows us to approach his closest family, intellectual, and cultural circle, which includes figures such as the Countess of Montijo and Baños: María Eugenia Ignacia Agustina de Palafox-Portocarrero de Guzmán y Kirkpatrick (1826-1920), wife of Napoleon III, or Donato García’s successor: Juan López Chavarri y Caudete (1813-1876). Additionally, this study cannot detach from the political and social context of his time, which influenced the professor’s scientific career. Despite being a pioneering figure in Spanish Mineralogy, participating in the country’s main scientific institutions, and enjoying recognition abroad, his contribution has gone unnoticed for almost two centuries. The discovery of these documents provides new data to approach the figure of Donato García and his scientific and personal relationships with those with whom he established intellectual ties throughout his life.