Paphiopedilum parishii (H. G. Reichenbach) Stein var. dianthum (Tang & F. T. Wang) Karasawa & Saito.

Plants lithophytic. Leaves 4-6, distichous; blade abaxially pale green and carinate, adaxially uniformly dark green, usually 15-30 × 2.7-5 cm, thickly leathery, obtuse-rounded and slightly unequally bilobulate at apex. Scape arching to suberect, 30-80 cm; peduncle green, glabrous or very sparsely pubescent; raceme (1 or)2-5-flowered; floral bracts greenish or yellowish green, broadly ovate, conduplicate, 1.3-2.9 cm, glabrous; pedicel and ovary green, 4-5 cm, glabrous. Flowers 8-10 cm in diam., persistent until fruiting; dorsal sepal white tinged and veined with green toward base; synsepal pale green-yellow or greenish white with darker green veins; petals whitish green or brownish green, with darker stripes; lip yellowish brownish with darker veins; staminode white with a dark green center. Dorsal sepal subelliptic or obovate-elliptic, 3-5.5 × 1.8-2.5 cm, adaxially shortly hirsute toward base, sometimes very slightly puberulent on both surfaces, basal margin recurved, apex shortly acuminate; synsepal similar to dorsal sepal, slightly shorter and broader. Petals pendulous, strongly twisted, linear-lanceolate or linear-tapering, 7-10(-12) × 0.7-1 cm, often with a few blackish warts along lower margin or toward adaxial base, minutely papillose-puberulent toward adaxial base and apex; warts often with a cluster of long hairs, sometimes becoming very small or disappearing, replaced by a few clusters of long hairs; lip helmet-shaped, 4-5 cm; pouch 2-3 × 2-2.5 cm, pointed at apex. Staminode obcordate or obovate, 10-12 × 7-9 mm, carinate abaxially, slightly puberulent toward adaxial base, with a small umbo near base, minutely ciliate, with a deep sinus or 3-lobed at apex. Fl. Jul-Oct. 2n = 26.

Steep rocks in evergreen broad-leaved forests or shaded limestone cliffs; 1000-2300 m. SW Guangxi, SW Guizhou, SE Yunnan [N Vietnam].