Bidding to start at $400,000 for Qing Dynasty map of Taiwan

After spending the past three weeks on display in Beijing, a 259-year-old map of Taiwan is to go under the hammer, an auction house in the capital said on Friday.

The "Complete Map of Taiwan Province of the Great Qing Dynasty" was owned by Emperor Qianlong (reigned AD 1735-1796), who is said to have kept it in his study. The map bears the seals of the Qing Dynasty (AD 1644-1911) emperor.

Consigned by an overseas collector, it will go up for auction at the Beijing Poly International Auction House in Beijing on November 30, with a reserve price of 3 million yuan ($400,000).