Plant 40-80 cm high, much branched, subglabrous to strigose or spreading pubescent in the upper part. Petioles of lower leaves up to 15 cm, upper ones much shorter, leaf blade of basal leaves 5-15 mm wide, rounded, 3-5 parted into broadly obovate segments, segments pinnately and divaricately laciniate into oblong lobes or teeth 2-3 mm wide. Cauline leaves similar but smaller. Inflorescence paniculate, of few-flowered racemes. Bracts 5-15 mm, linear. Pedicels 10-40 mm, ascending, bracteoles attached near the middle of the pedicel. Sepals blue to violet, upper sepal 12-13 x 6-7 mm, ovate, acute, pubescent, spur 14-15 mm long, c. 3.5 mm wide at the base, lateral sepal 13 x 7-8 mm, oblong-ovate, rounded, pubescent on the midline, lower sepals 14-15 x 7 mm, oblong-obovate, rounded, pubescent. Upper petal white with bluish apex, limb 8-9 mm, glabrous, 2-dentate, oblique, spur 13-15 mm, lower petal blue or violet, c. 6 mm long, broadly elliptic, rounded, cleft almost to the middle, claw 5 mm. Stamens 5-6 mm. Follicles 3, 10-16 x 3-3.5 mm, sparsely strigose or subglabrous, style 2-3 mm. Seed obpyramidal, 1 mm long, dark, scales irregularly arranged, relatively long.

Fl. Per.: May-August.

Type: Baramula, Kashmir, Winterbottom 348 (iso. K).

B-6 Chitral: Bombrait, Hassandin 535 (RAW), id., M.A. Siddiqi & A. Rahman 26867 (RAW), B-7 Swat: above Miandam, Y. Nasir & E.J. Ecker 7509 (RAW), Sho nala, A. Rahman 111 (RAW), Kalam, R.R. Stewart 24702 (RAW), Miandam, Y. Nasir 6809 (RAW), Madyan, Mir Alam 3900 (RAW), Utror. Sultanual Abedin 8450, 8451 (KUH), B-7 Hazara: rd. to Sharan, ± 2500 m, Y. Nasir & W. Meijer 8837 (RAW), Dadar, ± 4500', Y. Nasir 5952 (RAW), Kaghan vy., R.R. & I.D. Stewart 6042 (RAW), Shogran, 2.7.1953, Kazmi, s.n. (KUH), above Shogran, Y. Nasir & Zafar Ali 4437 (RAW), Kowai-Mahendri. M.A. Kazmi 13 (RAW), Naran, Coll. ignot. 2231 (RAW), B-8 Kashmir: Keran. R.R. & I.D. Stewart 17534 (RAW), Nili Mohri, Haveli Range, Jan Mohd 40 (RAW), Titwal, R.R. & I.D. Stewart 17468 (RAW), below Tragbal, R.R. Stewart 19440 (KUH).

Distribution: Himalaya, from Pakistan to Kashmir and N.W. India.

A common species from 1500-2700 m. Delphinium denudatum var. linearifolium Qureshi & Chaudhri as described by the authors (op.cit.) is supposed to differ from the type variety in the 3-lobed deeply divided leaves, the ultimate segments being narrowly linear. In the type variety the leaves are variable, generally the leaves are 5-lobed with broader segments, but occasionally on the same plant the radical leaves are broad and upper stem leaves are 3-5-lobed with narrow linear segments e.g. R.R. Stewart 10869 from Mussoorie, R.R. Stewart 2026 from Dharmsala and Parkinson 7372 from Simla hills. Similarly Delphinium denudatum var. latifolium Qureshi & Chaudhri described with broader leaf segments does not differ substantially from the type variety.