Avon () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers its ...

department in the

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

in north-central

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Geography

Avon and Fontainebleau, together with three other smaller communes, form an urban area of 36,713 inhabitants. The two towns share a common boundary, whereas other miscellaneous smaller villages are scattered around in the forest that surrounds them (one of the largest in France). Avon is built between two hills; one of them, known as the Butte Montceau, supports the homonymous neighbourhood, made of small blocks and houses; on the opposite one is built the Fougères neighbourhood, consisting of larger buildings. The rest of the town consists mainly of small houses, in the neighbourhoods of La Vallée and Vieil Avon. As previously said, the town is nested in the Fontainebleau forest; it is bordered on one side by the Seine river, crossed over by the Pont de Valvins. Fontainebleau Avon Trudaine

Demographics

The inhabitants are called the ''Avonnais''.

Places of interest

The main attraction in the town is the old, Romanesque church of St. Pierre, where the 18th-century French mathematician

Étienne Bézout Étienne Bézout (; 31 March 1730 – 27 September 1783) was a French mathematician who was born in Nemours, Seine-et-Marne, France, and died in Avon (near Fontainebleau), France. Work In 1758 Bézout was elected an adjoint in mechanics of the ...

was buried. Another historically relevant place is the Prieuré des Basses Loges, where Georges Gurdjieff lived and taught in the early twenties; he is buried in the town cemetery, along with writer

Katherine Mansfield Kathleen Mansfield Murry (née Beauchamp; 14 October 1888 – 9 January 1923) was a New Zealand writer, essayist and journalist, widely considered one of the most influential and important authors of the modernist movement. Her works are celebra ...

who died of tuberculosis while attending his teachings.

Transportation

Avon is served by the Fontainebleau-Avon station on the Transilien Paris – Lyon.

Geography

Demographics

Places of interest

Transportation

See also