Inner courtyard of the Fontainebleau Castle. The Castle is on the UNESCO world heritage list. [Photo: Imagine China]

15 pieces of art have been stolen from a Chinese museum south of Paris, including a cloisonné vase from Emperor Qianlong's reign during China's Qing Dynasty.

There was also a replica crown of the King of Siam given to France's emperor in the mid-19th century.

The French Culture Ministry says the break-in before dawn on Sunday at the Chinese Museum at Fontainebleau Castle was over in less than seven minutes.

Further investigation is underway.

A museum spokesman said he had no estimation of the objects' value, calling them "priceless" and the master works of the museum.

The ministry says the stolen objects were assembled by Empress Eugenie, the wife of French Emperor Napoleon III, for her Chinese museum in 1863.

The crown was donated by the ambassadors of Siam, now Thailand, during their official visit to France two years earlier.