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Plants: rhizome cylindrical, 6-7 mm in diameter; leaves thin-tissued, absent or partly developed at anthesis; flowering stem c. 300-700 mm tall. Inflorescences somewhat lax, 3-12-flowered. Flowers large, sepals and petals white, lip side lobes pale brown, midlobe purplish-pink. Sepals and petals spreading to reflexed, subequal, 9-19 x 4-6 mm. Lip 3-lobed, crests consisting of 2 broad, warty ridges; midlobe convex at the base of the gynostemium; side lobes erect, rounded; mentum adnate to the lip side lobes; spur curved, cylindrical, 4-5 mm long. Gynostemium 5-10 mm long.
Lip 3-lobed, 10–18.5 mm long; side-lobes erect, rounded; mid-lobe 7–12 × 6–11 mm, reduplicate, upcurved towards apex, elliptic, obtuse; callus of 5 low ridges to apex of mid-lobe; spur 3–7 mm long, narrowly conical, obtuse, slightly upcurved at apex.
Perennating organs subterranean, tuberous, irregularly cylindrical, horizontal, forming chains and branching occasionally, 5–9.5 × 1.1–2.5 cm; rhizome short, up to 1 cm in diameter; roots scattered along tuber, 1.5 mm in diameter, white.
Terrestrial herb, up to 0.6 m high. Midlobe long and narrow, crests of low warty cushions. Spike 40-150 mm long. Sepals and petals spreading fully to partly backwards. Flowers white and purple.
Dorsal sepal reflexed, 11.5–20 × 4–8 mm, lanceolate or oblanceolate, acute or obtuse, sometimes twisted; lateral sepals similar but slightly wider.
Sepals and petals pale to deep mauve-pink; lip purple with darker callus ridges and green or yellowish side-lobes flushed and edged with pink.
Leaves 3–6, 10–40 cm × 5–17 mm, linear, acute, lowest 1–2 sheathing, not present or just starting to develop at flowering time.
Inflorescence laxly few-to many-flowered; scape 37–75 cm long, with 2–3 sheaths in lower half, rhachis 10–26 cm long.
Bracts spreading, lowest 17–19 mm long, linear-lanceolate, acuminate.
Petals erect, 14–20 × 8–13 mm, elliptic-obovate, obtuse.
Pedicel and ovary 20–30 mm long, very slender.
Column clavate, 7–9 mm long, purple or pink.
Terrestrial herb 50–100 cm tall.
Fruit pendent, 18–20 mm long.
