LEAVES numerous, standing upright on their footstalks, about a foot in
      length, and four inches in breadth, ovato-oblong, coriaceous,
      somewhat fleshy, rigid, smooth, concave, entire on the edges,
      except on one side towards the base, where they are more or less
      curled, on the upper side of a deep green colour, on the under
      side covered with a fine glaucous meal, midrib hollow above and
      yellowish, veins unbranched, prominent on the inside, and
      impressed on the outside of the leaf, young leaves rolled up.

LEAF-STALKS about thrice the length of the leaves, upright, somewhat
      flattened, at bottom furnished with a sheath, and received into
      each other, all radical.

SCAPUS or flowering stem unbranched, somewhat taller than the leaves,
      proceeding from the sheath of one of them, upright, round, not
      perfectly straight, nearly of an equal thickness throughout, of a
      glaucous hue, covered with four or five sheaths which closely
      embrace it.  Two or more flowering stems spring from the same root,
      according to the age of the plant.

SPATHA terminal, about six inches in length, of a glaucous hue, with a
      fine bright purple at its base, running out to a long point,
      opening above from the base to within about an inch of the apex,
      where the edges roll over to one side, forming an angle of about
      forty-five degrees, and containing about six flowers.

FLOWERS of a bright orange colour, becoming upright, when perfectly
      detached from the spatha, which each flower is a considerable time
      in accomplishing.  In the plant at Chelsea, the two back petals,
      or, more properly segments of the first flower, sprang forth with
      the nectary, and while the former became immediately vertical, the
      latter formed nearly the same angle as the spatha; four days
      afterwards the remaining segment of the first flower, with the two
      segments and nectary of the second came forth, and in the same
      manner at similar intervals all the flowers, which were six in
      number, continued to make their appearance.

COROLLA deeply divided into three segments, which are ovato-lanceolate,
      slightly keeled, and somewhat concave, at the base white, fleshy,
      and covered with a glutinous substance flowing in great quantities
      from the nectary.

NECTARY of a fine azure blue and most singular form, composed of two
      petals, the upper petal very short and broad, with a whitish mucro
      or point, the sides of which lap over the base of the other petal;
      inferior petal about two inches and a half in length, the lower
      half somewhat triangular, grooved on the two lowermost sides, and
      keeled at bottom, the keel running straight to its extremity, the