Herbs 20-35 cm tall. Petiole pinkish, narrowly winged; leaf blade mid-green with a pinkish midvein, oblanceolate, 15-25 × 3-4 cm, subglabrous, remotely and shallowly pinnatilobed; lateral lobes 2 or 3 pairs, deltoid, patent, margin ± entire; interlobes broad and long, margin entire; terminal lobe helmet-shaped to triangular, margin entire. Scapes brownish green, overtopping leaves, sparsely arachnoid below capitulum. Capitulum 30-40 mm wide. Involucre 1-1.2 cm wide, base rounded. Outer phyllaries ca. 19, black-green with sharply delimited white border, ± not imbricate, lanceolate, outermost ones 12-14 × 2.5-3.5 mm and 3/4-4/5 as long as inner ones, ± appressed, border (0.1-)0.3-0.4 mm wide, margin ± glabrous, with a thick large horn ca. 2 mm below apex; inner phyllaries 1.3-1.6 cm, with a thick horn below apex. Ligules yellow; outer ligules flat, outside striped purplish gray; inner ligules with purple teeth. Stigmas grayish green. Anthers without pollen. Achene unknown. Fl. summer. Agamosperm.