The bulb, which serves as a survival organ, is spherical and ranges in color from whitish-pale pink to dark purple.

The pedicels, which support the flowers, are hairless, slightly arched, and greenish-purple in color, measuring 4.5 to 7 cm in length.

The longitudinal nectary groove is partially covered with dense white papillae, while the remaining part is dark red or brown at the base.

Lilium papilliferum was discovered in August 1888 by missionary and plant collector Pierre Jean Marie Delavay in Tapintse on the northern tip of Lake Dali in northwestern Yunnan.

Subsequent discoveries were made by George Forrest in 1914 at the Mekong-Saluen watershed, and Joseph Francis Charles Rock in 1922.

In 1948, Rock brought the bulbs to England for the first time, leading to the first cultivated flower of Lilium papilliferum in 1949.

Like many other Chinese species, Lilium papilliferum was initially classified by Harold Frederick Comber in the Sinomartagon section.

[6] Lilium papilliferum is a rare plant native to the provinces of Shaanxi, Sichuan, and northeastern Yunnan in the People's Republic of China.

However, in the early 21st century, growers and collectors obtained an unidentified species that turned out to be Lilium papilliferum, collected from neighboring Tibet to the west.