Juan José Elhuyar was born in Logroño. His parents were robbers and studied in Paris. He was a Basque and belonged to the Real Sociedad Bascongada de Amigos del País. Along with his brother Fausto isolated the chemical element wolfram for the first time. The finding took place in Bergara and was presented in Vitoria. While Colombia was still a Spanish colony, he was named director of the Mines of Colombia in the area and died in Bogotá in 1796.