a native of grassy hills in Europe, south of the Alps, from 

 Portugal and Spam to Greece, Turkey and Asia Minor, and 

 it crosses the Mediterranean to the Algerian coast; like 

 its congeners it varies much in the size of the flower, the 

 form of the lip, and relative dimensions of the purple, gold, 

 and blue markings ; the latter heing sometimes reduced to 

 one or two spots. The specimens here figured flowered in a 

 cool frame in the month of April, and were kindly commu- 

 nicated by His Eoyal Highness for publication in the Botanical 

 Magazine. For living specimens, the Eoyal Gardens are in- 

 debted to J. T. Moggridge, Esq., E.L.S., who collected them 

 in the neighbourhood of Mentone, and which flowered a few 

 weeks after those here figured. 



Descr. Tubers globose. Leaves linear-oblong, acute, 

 spreading. Stem four to twelve inches high, sheathed, 3- to 

 6-flowered. Bracts one to one and half inch long, linear- 

 oblong, erect, margins involute. Floicers one half to one inch 

 from the base of the lip to the tip of the upper sepal. Sepals 

 subequal, incurved, linear-oblong, green, with broad purple 

 bands, but very variable in this respect ; lateral spreading ; 

 dorsal arched. Petals very small, triangular-lanceolate, re- 

 curved, dark purple or maroon-brown, very variable in size. 

 Lip quadrate-oblong in general outline, very convex, margins 

 recurved ; lateral lobes rounded, rarely extending beyond the 

 middle ; mid-lobe large, broad, rounded, obscurely notched ; 

 disk fteel-blue, very shining, with a golden edge ; margins 

 broadly maroon-purple, velvety and fimbriate. Column short 

 anther arched, subclavate, obtuse. — J. D. H. 



Fig. 1, Front, and 2, back view of flower : — both magnified. 



