170 Mr. J. Miers on the Menispermacese. 



56. Synclisia. 

 This genus was established by Mr. Bentham in his ' Genera 

 Plantarum ' (i. 36) ; it is one of African origin and of much in- 

 terest. Although nothing is known of its female flower or of 

 its seminal structure, it is there placed in the same section as 

 Tiliacora and Ahuta, both very peculiar genera, remarkable for 

 their seeds with deeply ruminated albumen and a very long, 

 narrow, hippocrepiform embryo. The only apparent ground 

 for this arrangement is the valvate sestivation of its inner whorl 

 of sepals; but with equal or even greater reason it might be 

 placed among the Pachygonece, near another African genus, 

 Triclisia, in which the inner sepals have also a valvate sestivation 

 and at their lower edges, though not agglutinated, adhere closely 

 together by their tomentose margins, and the stamens are 

 likewise partly monadelphous. Until its seed be known, it 

 appears to me much safer to place it among the genera of doubt- 

 ful position. One of its chief peculiarities is the agglutination 

 of the inner whorl of sepals, for more than half their length, 

 into a cylindrical 3-lobed tube, in which respect it bears some 

 resemblance to Ci/clea and Peraphora : the six more external 

 sepals, in two series, are much smaller, quite free, linear, and 

 very acute. It has six minute scale-like petals, and nine sta- 

 mens one-third the length of the inner sepals ; of these, three 

 are more external, free, and a triHe shorter than the other six, 

 which are briefly monadelphous at their base, and central. The 

 inflorescence consists of two supra-axillary very slender pedicels, 

 double the length of the petiole, each bearing a solitary flower, 

 which is of rather a large size for the order. In its 1-flowered 

 axillarv pedicels it therefore bears some resemblance to Pycnar- 

 rhena, Syrrhonema, and Antitaxis. Only one species is known, 

 which has very slender scandent branches, and distant, cordate, 

 somewhat oval leaves, acuminated at the apex, with rather short 

 petioles. 



Synclisia, Benth. — Flores dioici. — Masc. Sepala 9, subcarnosa, 

 in seriebus 3 alternatim disposita, quorum 3 exteriora bractei- 

 formia, 3 intermedia paulo majora, cuncta linearia, acutissima, 

 extus longe pilosa, intus glabra, 3 interiora 4-plo majora, in 

 tubum cylindraceura apice 3-partitum agglutinata, laciniis 

 tubo dimidio brevioribus, una cum tubo extus glabris, erectis, 

 subobtusis, sepalis externis 3-plo latioribus, marginibus sericeo 

 tomentosis, sestivatione valvatim clausis. Petala 6, minima, 

 sepalis interioribus 10-plo breviora, suborbicularia, imo bre- 

 viter unguiculata, glabra. Stamina 9, quorum 3 exteriora 

 libera, paululo breviora, 6 centralia imo in stipitc breviter 

 monadelpha, sepalis interioribus 3-plo breviora; filamenta 



