Related News

Home » World

Rare objects stolen from Fontainebleau palace's Chinese museum

About 15 rare pieces of art were stolen from the Chinese Museum of the Chateau de Fontainebleau in Paris on Sunday morning, the French culture ministry said.

Among the missing artefacts are a Chinese chimera in cloisonné enamel from the reign of Qianlong (1736-1795) in Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), which was taken from the Old Summer Palace by the Anglo-French Allied Forces in 1860.

Also missing are a crown of the King of Siam, given to Emperor Napoleon III during the king's official visit to France in 1861, the ministry said in a statement.

The stolen artifacts came from China and Siam, today’s Thailand, and were collected by Empress Eugenie, Napoleon's wife. She had them placed in her museum, which was created in 1863.

The ministry said the burglary, which happened in one of the most secure parts of the castle, took only seven minutes and that an investigation had been launched.

The Chateau de Fontainebleau was the residence of French monarchs from Louis VII through Napoleon III and is now a national museum.




 

Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.

沪公网安备 31010602000204号

Email this to your friend