SHANGHAI, July 3 -- A GIANT Chinese painting that was carried into outer space by Shenzhou VI and has recently been traversing the globe will be displayed in Shanghai free of charge until Thursday.

It will be auctioned off on September 30 when it is expected to fetch up to US$10 million or more. The proceeds will be used to encourage fine art in China.

The 90-meter-long painting, "Ode to Shenzhou," was created by 168 of China's most famous painters. They have all signed it, together with three astronauts, Yang Liwei, Nie Haisheng and Fei Junlong.

It is made up of three parts - feature, flowers and birds and landscapes - and is on show at the InterContinental Shanghai in Pudong New Area.

The painting has been displayed in 12 cities of seven countries, including the United States, Canada and Australia, during its "Peace Travel."It has just been shown in Hong Kong and next stop is Singapore.

According to the China Softbill Auction Group, the painting will go under the hammer with a reserve of US$9.6 million, indicating the 9.6 million square meters of land area of the country.

The auction site has yet to be chosen and hinges on application details from a number of cities.

"The money will be used to set up a China art fund to award anyone contributed to fine arts," said a company manager surnamed Liu.

The painting has been insured for 290 million yuan (US$38.13 million) by the China United Property Insurance Company.

Shenzhou VI blasted off on October 12, 2005, carrying the painting.