For centuries, cobblestone have been excavated from the forests of Fontainebleau, France. King Philippe August in the 12th century declared that all cobblestone in Paris must come from Fontainebleau. Today, it is illegal to have a quarry within the Fontainebleau nature perserve, but it is not illegal in the departement next door.

This three generation family business has provided stone that sits in front of many famous monuments, including the Chateau of Versailles and the Louvre. However, due to the relative lower price of imported stone, many historical monument projects in France choose Indian or Portugese sandstone.

M. De Oliviera and his family are keeping this tradition and knowledge of hand stone carving alive in France, using traditional techniques. They have some of the most in depth knowledge of the stone, and they have been called upon by expert geologists to better understand the origins of the sandstone in the Fontainebleau area.

The story is almost as rich as the form and color palette of the stone. The exploration of these on a monotone color palette was extremely satisfying to my eye.

These photos were taken over a series of visits to the quarry in October 2024.