Plants 15-30 cm tall. Rhizomes stout, branching. Roots dense. Stems erect, 10-20 cm long, with few tubular sheaths at base. Leaves 2-5, alternate, sessile, closely arranged when flowering, with their bases overlapping, elliptic or ovate-lanceolate, 5-10 cm long, 3-4 cm wide, apex acute, base short sheathing, plicate, entire, margins often ciliate, glabrous or sparsely hirsute on lower surface, many nerved. Peduncle 4-7cm long, densely hirsute; bracts leafy, enclosing ovary, ovate, ca. 4-5 cm long, 2.5 cm wide, sparsely ciliate; pedicel and ovary ca. 3 cm long, glabrous. Flowers solitary, pale pink to purple, with red stripes and spots especially on lip, ca. 5-7 cm in diam.; dorsal sepal ovate to elliptic, 3-4 cm long, 1.5-2 cm wide, apex acute, contracted at base; synsepal ovate, 2.5-3 cm long, 1.5-2 cm wide, shortly bifid at apex; petals oblong or lanceolate, ca. 4 cm long, 1.3 cm wide, apex acute, red spotted and sparsely hirsute near base; lip sac pinkish or yellowish, with red or purple spots and stripes, ovoid or ellipsoid, 3-4.cm long, 2 cm wide, 1.5-1.8 cm tall, with large adaxial opening in center, opening ca. 1 cm across, base of upper surface with erect crisped collar-like wall, sac barbate inside at rear wall; column ca. 1 cm long, 3-4 mm thick, apex with 2 wing-like appendages, barbate on ventral base; anther globose, 3 mm across, filament slender, attached to wing-like appendage; staminode short stalked, whitish or pale green, triangular, 10 mm long; 8 mm wide; stigma thick, solid cymbiform, 8 mm long, not protruding beyond staminode.

ILAN: Chungyangchienshan, Su 1200*; Nanhutashan, Su 8320. NANTOU: Chilaishan, Su 1101. HUALIEN: Chingshuishan, Su 9497.

A variable species widely distributed from eastern Europe through Siberia to China and Japan. Taiwan, alpine grasslands and steep cliffs and talus above timberline, 2,500-3,900 m.