There is also a very important French Revival monument in the Fontainebleau Palace - the Francis I Gallery. This is a very long and narrow room (64 x 6 meters), capped with a stone dome. The wall of the gallery is divided into two levels: the lower level is paneled with carved wooden wainscoting, on which are the King's coat of arms and the King's cursive signature in an oval frame.
The upper level of the gallery is painted with watercolor murals and reliefs. Windows opening into the wall form small niches: the beams of light passing through them illuminate the frescoes and their unique frames, hitting the golden surface of the oak floor. The Gallery of Francis I was the first place in France to be decorated with large and colorful murals of a secular character. All the frescoes, without exception, are dedicated to Francis I - to his victories, valor and honors, and to his patronage of science and art. The melody repeatedly sings of the coat of arms of Francis I - the coat of arms with the spirit of fire and the king's inscription "Nutriscoetextinguo" (I destroy, I feed). The meaning of this inscription is that a wise and just king sows happiness and kindness while eradicating evil and ignorance.
The 14 murals in the gallery have been carefully considered to form a whole. In the center of the large wall of the gallery is the work "Danae" by Italian artist Primatigio - the most important mural in the entire mural group. The artist cleverly drew the profile of an ancient Greek beauty with blond curly hair, stretched out on a pillow and meditating, into an oval frame. The fresco is completely enveloped in flashes of gold, which enhance the effect of the gilded frame.
Several frescoes in the Francis I Gallery are paired, allowing the artist to represent the main idea from different aspects. For example, the "Cultivation of Achilles" and "Venus Punishing Amur, the God of Love" in the mural group imply the idea of ??national virtue. All the patterns contain plots from mythology and the works of ancient people, but most of the contents have obscure and profound meanings, and their meanings have not been revealed until now.
The Pharaohs I Gallery is a connected gallery leading to one of the buildings in the Oval Courtyard. The courtyard is closed by several lower rooms with identical facades that squeeze into the main building. The Oval Court is now closed and a lattice gate has been erected in the office space.
One of the monuments in the Oval Courtyard is the Saint-Louis Temple, which was later restored. The building has a huge base, floors with cornices and windows, and the two symmetrical chimneys on the arched roof give it an elegant and symmetrical appearance. The skylight of the Saint-Louis Temple has also undergone great changes: the frame is decorated with regular ancient Roman pilaster pediments.
The architect Le Breton erected a golden gate on the southwest side of the Oval Court - the defensive entrance to the castle, which still seems to be impenetrable. The Golden Gate is very ornate, almost as high as the hall, made of light-colored stone and red bricks. The facade is divided precisely into three parts by length and height, while on either side of the door the architect created a row of windows from top to bottom, each with a brick pediment.