Gogotte de Fontainebleau

Gogotte de Fontainebleau, France, Oligocene Period.
300,000-7000 years old.
Sandstone.
Measurements: 33 x 59 x 40 cm.

The gogottes are mineralogical works of art of extraordinary rarity that acquire unique shapes, sandstones of natural forms millions of years old, formed with fragments of quartz joined by calcium carbonate. Louis XIV had numerous specimens excavated to decorate the garden of the Palace of Versailles. It is a sculptural work forged over the centuries. The geological process that took place in the famous Fontainebleau region, known for its pure white sand, remains shrouded in mystery.

During the Oligocene, some 30 million years ago, specific environmental conditions allowed the deposition of ultrafine quartz sediments. These sand grains, subjected to enormous pressures and the filtering action of mineral-rich groundwater, slowly cemented together, forming the sinuous structures of the Gogottes, which seem to blend the organic and the mineral.

Each gogotte is unique, a true natural sculpture that has been advanced by millennia to modern art. The telluric value and primordial forces give rise to luminous pieces that seem to pay homage to Mother Earth as universal creator.