plant flowering to 37 cm tall. leaves densely rosulate, spreading, 25–30 cm long, grey-green adaxially, silver abaxially; sheath broadly elliptic, 25 x 20 mm, somewhat castaneous, glabrous, lustrous; blade narrowly triangular , acute, pungent, 7–11 mm wide, appressed cinereous lepidote especially abaxially, serrate with slender, antrorse, reddish spines 3–4 mm long. inflorescence: peduncle erect, 12 cm x 5 mm, white stellate lepidote; peduncle bracts erect, imbricate, the lowest foliaceous; the upper elliptic, acute to attenuate, entire, thin coriaceous, nerved, cinereous lepidote, rose; fertile part erect, simple, very slenderly cylindric, 21 x 1–2 cm, ca 80-flowered; floral bracts erect and tightly imbricate in life, spreading to somewhat recurving at the apex when dried, elliptic to oblanceolate, broadly acute, apiculate to pungent, 12–21 mm long, inconspicuously and irregularly serrate, thin coriaceous, nerved, white lepidote, rose. flowers with a stout 1–2 mm long pedicel, erect to slightly spreading; sepals elliptic, broadly acute, 12–14 mm long, thin coriaceous, the adaxial pair carinate, white lepidote, pale green; corolla with slightly spreading lobes; petals spathulate, obtuse to emarginate, 16–18 mm long, dark blue-violet. stamens and style included.Edited from : Luther 1995b. (protologue) Miscellaneous new taxa of Bromeliaceae (X) .