Mariano Eduardo de Rivero y Ustáriz

Mariano Eduardo de Rivero y Ustáriz
Rivero y Ustáriz in an undated portrait
Born(1798-10-12)12 October 1798
Arequipa, Viceroyalty of Peru
Died6 November 1857(1857-11-06) (aged 59)
Paris, France
NationalityPeruvian
Occupation(s)Scientist, geologist, mineralogist, chemist, archaeologist, politician, diplomat
Known forDiscovery of Humboldtine; founding scientific institutions in Peru
SpouseAgueda Escolástica Pacheco de Salas y Salazar (m. 1840)
ChildrenCandelaria and Francisca Guillermina
AwardsOrder of Leopold (Belgium), Order of the Dannebrog (Denmark)

Mariano Eduardo de Rivero y Ustáriz (12 October 1798 – 6 November 1857) was a prominent Peruvian scientist, geologist, mineralogist, chemist, archaeologist, politician, and diplomat. His publications on the discovery of Humboldtine (an iron-oxalate), which demonstrated the existence of organic minerals; on deposits of copper and sodium nitrate (saltpeter) near Tarapacá in the Atacama Desert; and on the industrial potential of guano and coal in Peru were forward-looking. He is considered a pioneer of mining education in South America and one of the most notable Peruvian scientists of the 19th century.