Tree up to 15 m, young parts shortly reddish stellate-tomentose, prickly. Leaves palmately lobed, clustered at the ends of the branches; petioles 17-50 cm, shortly rusty tomentose, glabrescent, unarmed, dilated into a sheathing base, ligule bicuspid; blade rotund, 25-40 cm, base cordate, glabrous above, shortly red-pubescent below, coriaceous, usually 9-lobed, sinuses narrow, lobes oblong-elliptic or oblong-oblanceolate, acuminate, margin distantly serrate distally. Inflorescence a raceme of umbellules, at first reddish pubescent, glabrescent, sometimes with a few spines below; rachis stout (c. 1 cm ø), c. 35 cm, bearing branches along its length, and ending in an umbel, bracts oblong-ovate, acuminate 1-2 cm long; primary branches (peduncles) few, spreading, stout, without spines, to c. 15 cm; umbellules of c. 8-13 flowers, pedicels 1.5-2.5 cm, stout (3-4 mm ø), reddish tomentose, basal bracts triangular, c. 5 mm long. Flowers hermaphrodite. Calyx an irregular short rim. Corolla hemispherical in bud, c. 6 mm high, 12 mm diam., densely rusty pubescent outside, falling as a calyptra. Stamens c. 13, filaments stout, 4 mm, anthers ovate, c. 4 mm long. Ovary broadly hemispherical, shortly furfuraceous, 14-celled. Fruit unknown.
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