A robe that belonged the 18th century Qing Dynasty emperor Qianlong will go under the hammer in London on November 8, where it is expected to reach a price of around 200,000 British pounds (around 250,000 U.S. dollars).

A screenshot of Emperor Qianlong's twelve-symbol festival robe. [Photo: guancha.cn]

The silk robe was made in the late 18th century for Emperor Qianlong to wear twice a year during the performance of ceremonies aimed invoking rain and a good harvest. It is embroidered with nine dragons clutching flaming pearls of wisdom interspersed with chrysanthemum flowers.

It would have been stored away and used by several other emperors after Qianlong. The robe is being sold by the family of a British army officer who acquired it over 100 years ago.

Dr. Benedetta Mattino, a specialist in the Chinese art department at the auctioneers Bonhams, said "This robe is extremely rare. The only one that has sold before that is of a similar kind and period went for ￡190,000."