The Art of Nature: Gogottes and the Collectors Cabinet
27 November - December 2025
Gogottes are natural creations formed from sands during the Oligocene Period, approximately 30 million years ago, that were deposited in what is now the area known as Fontainebleau in France. Over time groundwater rich in silica flowed through the sands, creating voids and in these voids the swirling waters enabled the sands to bind with the silica and cement themselves into natural sculptural shapes.
Alongside the gogottes in this exhibition are other natural history, and related items, that would have filled the Collectors Cabinets that 'good' houses kept demonstrating their worldly knowledge and place in society.
Alongside the gogottes in this exhibition are other natural history, and related items, that would have filled the Collectors Cabinets that 'good' houses kept demonstrating their worldly knowledge and place in society.
1. Gogotte
39 x 32 x 21cm. Height including stand 57cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$8,500
39 x 32 x 21cm. Height including stand 57cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$8,500
2. Gogotte
25 x 44 x 16cm. Height including stand 31cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$11,500 SOLD
25 x 44 x 16cm. Height including stand 31cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$11,500 SOLD
3. Gogotte
39 x 24 x 15cm. Height including stand 59cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$4,850
39 x 24 x 15cm. Height including stand 59cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$4,850
4. Gogotte
35 x 38 x 14cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$5,650 SOLD
35 x 38 x 14cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$5,650 SOLD
5. Gogotte
70 x 63 x 22cm. *A very large example.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$14,500
70 x 63 x 22cm. *A very large example.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$14,500
6. Gogotte
18 x 27 x 12cm. Height including stand 23.5cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$2,450 SOLD
18 x 27 x 12cm. Height including stand 23.5cm.
Oligocene, 30 million years old.
Fontainebleau, France.
A naturally shaped sandstone concretion, consisting of tiny quartz fragments held together by calcium carbonate.
$2,450 SOLD
7. Vertebrae with wonderful sculptural qualities
Height 42 cm. Height including stand 80 cm
$475
Height 42 cm. Height including stand 80 cm
$475
8. An Amethyst Crystal Obelisk of good colour and proportions.
39 x 6cm
$685 SOLD
39 x 6cm
$685 SOLD
9. A very rare Coco de Mer Nut
Found on only two islands in the Seychelles, and a protected species, the Coco de Mer has been collected as a rarity for centuries. Ancient mariners believed it was the remains of a Mermaid's body.
Height 33cm. Height including stand 52cm
$1,850
Found on only two islands in the Seychelles, and a protected species, the Coco de Mer has been collected as a rarity for centuries. Ancient mariners believed it was the remains of a Mermaid's body.
Height 33cm. Height including stand 52cm
$1,850
10. A very rare early shell portrait of a Satyr in the style of Arcimboldo.
Eighteenth Century or earlier in original re-decorated frame.
Image: 47 x 37cm. Frame: 69 x 59cm
Provenance: Ex. the collections of Martyn Cook, prominent antique dealer and collector, and the eminent art collector John Schaeffer.
$3,250
Eighteenth Century or earlier in original re-decorated frame.
Image: 47 x 37cm. Frame: 69 x 59cm
Provenance: Ex. the collections of Martyn Cook, prominent antique dealer and collector, and the eminent art collector John Schaeffer.
$3,250
11. A Japanese Ikebana Root Wood Vase
Contemplative vase with original liner.
Probably Meiji period (1868-1912).
36 x 25cm.
$395 SOLD
Contemplative vase with original liner.
Probably Meiji period (1868-1912).
36 x 25cm.
$395 SOLD
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12. A Fossilised Mammoth's Tooth
The Wooly Mammoth roamed the earth in the Late Pleistocene Ice Age, between c. 129,000 and c. 11,700 years ago.
11 x12 x 9cm
$1,550 SOLD
The Wooly Mammoth roamed the earth in the Late Pleistocene Ice Age, between c. 129,000 and c. 11,700 years ago.
11 x12 x 9cm
$1,550 SOLD
13. Chinese Gongshi or Scholar’s Rock.
40 x 50 x 30cm.
Chinese Scholars have used these rocks as a focus for meditation of religious or philosophic principles since the Song Dynasty. They serve as a tool for contemplation prior to such activities as poetry, writing or painting.
This sculpture also has a very close visual relationship to the sculptures of Barbara Hepworth.
$1,250
40 x 50 x 30cm.
Chinese Scholars have used these rocks as a focus for meditation of religious or philosophic principles since the Song Dynasty. They serve as a tool for contemplation prior to such activities as poetry, writing or painting.
This sculpture also has a very close visual relationship to the sculptures of Barbara Hepworth.
$1,250
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14. A rare and very large Quartz Rock Crystal.
30 x 16 x 16cm. Height including stand 36cm.
$1,950
30 x 16 x 16cm. Height including stand 36cm.
$1,950
15. An Exceedingly Rare Stalagmite.
Height 47cm. Height with stand 50cm.
This specimen was displayed at a private Museum at Victor Harbor in South Australia which closed to the public in the late 1980s. It was then in a private collection before being sold through a lapidary and collectors shop in Victor Harbor in the 1990s to a private Adelaide collection.
$785
Height 47cm. Height with stand 50cm.
This specimen was displayed at a private Museum at Victor Harbor in South Australia which closed to the public in the late 1980s. It was then in a private collection before being sold through a lapidary and collectors shop in Victor Harbor in the 1990s to a private Adelaide collection.
$785
A rare group of Stalagmites and Stalactites from the Waitomo region of New Zealand.
These were obtained when parts of the caves were destroyed during mining. They were preserved in a local museum which closed when the region was further mined.
Stalagmites grow approx. 1 cubic cm every 40 – 100 years.
16. A Small Stalagmite. 19.5cm including base. $195
17. A Long Cylindrical Stalagmite. 53cm including base. $385
18. Stalactite. 31cm including base. $385
19. Stalactite. 37cm including base. $485
These were obtained when parts of the caves were destroyed during mining. They were preserved in a local museum which closed when the region was further mined.
Stalagmites grow approx. 1 cubic cm every 40 – 100 years.
16. A Small Stalagmite. 19.5cm including base. $195
17. A Long Cylindrical Stalagmite. 53cm including base. $385
18. Stalactite. 31cm including base. $385
19. Stalactite. 37cm including base. $485
20. A Clam Shell of good proportions.
Would look great on a sideboard for your keys or a chocolate nest!
$645
Would look great on a sideboard for your keys or a chocolate nest!
$645
What are Gogottes?
Gogottes are very rare naturally occurring sandstone concretions formed over 30 million years ago in the Fontainebleau region of France. These surreal, cloud-like formations were created when superheated water, rich in dissolved minerals such as silica, filtered through layers of sand. Over millennia, these minerals bonded the sand grains together, forming swirling, layered shapes that appear remarkably sculptural and even “modernist” in today’s artistic realm.
What makes Gogottes particularly unique is not just their geological origin but their astonishing aesthetic qualities. Their smooth curves and intricate whorls can resemble abstract sculpture and be suggestive of organic forms. Each Gogotte is entirely unique, and their organic shapes have drawn attention not only from geologists but also from artists, collectors, and world-renowned institutions and creates their enduring fascination and value.
Their rarity stems from their specific geological conditions of formation, which occurred only in the French Fontainebleau region. Most Gogottes were excavated during the 18th and 19th centuries and were hugely collectible specifically after Louis XIV had them excavated for his Versailles palace gardens, where they can still be seen today, particularly around the Grove of the Three Fountains.
As well as a strong demand by collectors over the centuries for their “Cabinets of Curiosities” the artistic community has always taken great interest in Gogottes. Notably in the twentieth century, artists associated with surrealism and abstract expressionism, such as Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore, admired their forms, and their influence is evident in the biomorphic curves and natural symmetry embraced in their artworks.
Major museums around the world too have recognized the scientific and artistic value of Gogottes. The British Museum displays a Gogotte acquired in 2017 in honour of Sir David Attenborough, showcasing it as a natural marvel that bridges geology and aesthetics. Similarly, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., displays a large well preserved Gogotte. These institutional displays highlight not only the geological processes that created them but also their cultural significance and visual appeal.
Gogottes are very rare naturally occurring sandstone concretions formed over 30 million years ago in the Fontainebleau region of France. These surreal, cloud-like formations were created when superheated water, rich in dissolved minerals such as silica, filtered through layers of sand. Over millennia, these minerals bonded the sand grains together, forming swirling, layered shapes that appear remarkably sculptural and even “modernist” in today’s artistic realm.
What makes Gogottes particularly unique is not just their geological origin but their astonishing aesthetic qualities. Their smooth curves and intricate whorls can resemble abstract sculpture and be suggestive of organic forms. Each Gogotte is entirely unique, and their organic shapes have drawn attention not only from geologists but also from artists, collectors, and world-renowned institutions and creates their enduring fascination and value.
Their rarity stems from their specific geological conditions of formation, which occurred only in the French Fontainebleau region. Most Gogottes were excavated during the 18th and 19th centuries and were hugely collectible specifically after Louis XIV had them excavated for his Versailles palace gardens, where they can still be seen today, particularly around the Grove of the Three Fountains.
As well as a strong demand by collectors over the centuries for their “Cabinets of Curiosities” the artistic community has always taken great interest in Gogottes. Notably in the twentieth century, artists associated with surrealism and abstract expressionism, such as Pablo Picasso and Henry Moore, admired their forms, and their influence is evident in the biomorphic curves and natural symmetry embraced in their artworks.
Major museums around the world too have recognized the scientific and artistic value of Gogottes. The British Museum displays a Gogotte acquired in 2017 in honour of Sir David Attenborough, showcasing it as a natural marvel that bridges geology and aesthetics. Similarly, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., displays a large well preserved Gogotte. These institutional displays highlight not only the geological processes that created them but also their cultural significance and visual appeal.
