Forty thousand years ago, nomadic populations settled around the forest. Various traces of their presence have been discovered: carved stone tools, bones of such animals as bears, elephants, rhinos, and giant stags. More than 2,000 caves with rock carvings are scattered across the forest. They are attributed to all periods between the Upper
Paleolithic (around 12000 BC) and modern times. However, the majority of the carvings are from the
Mesolithic (between 9000 and 5500 BC). They often take the form of geometric etchings (lattices), though some are figurative. The fourth century BC saw the arrival of
Celt and
Ligurian tribes. The Celtes settled the region in the fifth century BC. A Celtic necropolis was discovered in Cannes-Écluse, along with arms and auroch horns. Near Bouray (Seine-et-Oise), a bronze Celtic statuette called the
God of Bouray was dredged up, while in Bossy-aux-Cailles, a Celtic
tintinnabulum was discovered.:89
A royal domain Around the year 1000, the human occupation of the forest consisted of a series of enclaves controlled by petty lords and wealthy landowners. In 1067,
Philippe I acquired the county of Gâtinais, which gave the crown control over the entire territory of the current forest. For the kings of France, the forest had several uses, including hunting and forestry, but also a military interest, as Fontainebleau was a strategic location on the road to Sens and Burgundy. In 1137, Louis VI began construction of a hunting castle consisting of a dungeon, moat, and chapel. It is during this period that the first use of the word 'Fontainebleau' appears. In 1716, following the severe winter of the year 1709, 6,000 hectares were planted with deciduous trees, but this turned out to be an almost total failure. In 1750, the 90 km perimeter of the forest was delimited by 1050 boundary markers, some of which are still visible today. In 1786,
Scotch pines were introduced. After the Revolution, following numerous illegal cuts and the proliferation of game due to lack of hunting, Napoleon I reformed the forestry administration and that of the castle in 1807.
Creation of the world's first nature reserve , 1866, c. 1824|leftIn 1830, the planting of another 6,000 hectares of pine provoked the anger of artists who came to seek inspiration in the forest. The Forest of Fontainebleau is famous worldwide for having inspired 19th-century artists, including painters of the
Barbizon School and the
Impressionists. The
Barbizon painters, led by
Théodore Rousseau, militated against the planting of softwoods which had been carried out at a pace of several hundred hectares per year since 1830. They objected on the grounds that the plantings distorted the landscapes. The artists also opposed the planned regeneration cuts in old forests in 1837 and founded the Society of Friends of the Forest of Fontainebleau to protect it. However, the Forest of Fontainebleau thus became the first nature reserve in the world. == Geology ==