stems 6–12 in. high, 3/4–1 1/4 in. square, with the angles much compressed and the teeth with erect rudimentary leaves 1 lin. long, green, conspicuously velvety-pubescent; flowers usually 3–10 successively developed from a short stout peduncle near the base of the young stems; pedicels usually 3/4–1 in. long, occasionally longer, 2 lin. thick, velvety; sepals 4–7 lin. long, lanceolate, acute, velvety; corolla ovate, acuminate in bud, when expanded 4 1/2–6 1/2 in. in diam., pubescent on the back, transversely rugose on the inner face, with the disk and basal 1/3– 2/3 of the lobes varying from very pale purple to dark purple-red, with numerous transverse pale yellowish (rarely olive-coloured) lines, rather broadest on the lobes, apical part of the lobes entirely dull purple to very dark purple, with the entire surface nearly or quite to the tips of the lobes covered with straight simple pale purple (or occasionally white) hairs 1–3 1/2 lin. long, all pointing towards the apex of the lobes, but are not adpressed; lobes 2–2 3/4 in. long, 1–1 1/4 in. broad, lanceolate, acuminate, flat, ciliate to the tips with long simple white or pale purple hairs, half of them directed inwards; outer corona-lobes ascending-spreading, slightly recurved at the tips, 3–5 lin. long, linear-oblong to slightly ovate-oblong or lanceolate, varying from acuminate or acute to very obtuse, with a minute apiculus or slightly 3-toothed at the apex, concave down the face, pale yellowish with a broad dull purple stripe down the middle and some purple dots along the margins or purple with the apex or some mottlings there yellowish; inner corona-lobes connivent-erect with the tips slightly diverging, dark purple-brown, often paler (or perhaps yellowish) towards the tips, variable, sometimes with the dorsal wing adnate for 3/4 or wholly to the inner horn, 1 1/3–2 lin. broad, truncate or oblique and denticulate or entire at the apex, sometimes free nearly or to the base or adnate for half its length, 3/4–1 1/2 lin. broad at the base, deltoid or deltoid-attenuate to oblong, acute or obtuse or toothed, inner horn 3–5 lin. long, varying from slightly longer to twice as long as the dorsal wing, triquetrous-subulate, acute, straight or slightly recurving. null
