Shrub 0.5-1.5 m tall;  mature stems terete to subterete, striate, minutely verrucose, short-pilose with whitish to grayish-white or ferruginous, curled hairs, glabrate;  twigs subterete, bluntly angled, densely short-pilose as stems.  Leaves thick-coriaceous, basically flat, elliptic-ovate, (1.5-)3-5.5 x (0.8-)1.3-2.5 cm, base obtuse or rounded, short-decurrent, apex acute and shortly and bluntly mucronate or obtuse to rounded, margin entire, narrowly revolute, bearing 1-2 pairs of pustular glands at base of lamina or onto petiole, glabrous above, densely tomentose, rarely glabrate, beneath with whitish-gray to ferruginous hairs obscuring most of the surface except the veins;  pinnately nerved with midrib impressed above and raised beneath, lateral nerves (3-5 per side) and veinlets impressed above and raised beneath, ± conspicuous on both surfaces;  petiole stout, subterete, narrowly canaliculate above, rugose, 3-7 mm long, pubescent as stems.  Inflorescence (once-branched at base) 3-5-flowered;  rachis, pedicels, floral bracts, and bracteoles densely short-tomentose with whitish to ferruginous hairs, glabrate;  rachis stout, terete, 1-2(-5) cm long;  floral bract concave, ovate, 1.5-2(-3) mm long (leaf-like, oblong, to ca. 5 mm long), obtuse;  pedicel subterete (angled), 3-9 mm long;  bracteoles broadly ovate, 2-3 mm long, acute or obtuse.  Flowers with calyx 7-8 mm long, lobes ovate, 5.5-6 mm long, acuminate, densely short-pilose with ferruginous hairs over whole length or distal half to glabrate without, short-pilose distally within;  corolla 10-11 mm long, densely short-pilose along the wings but glabrous in between, rose to scarlet when fresh, lobes broadly deltoid, 3-4 mm long, acute; stamens 6-8 mm long;  filaments 4-6 mm long;  anthers 2.5-3 mm long, base short-mucronate;  thecae 1.5-2 mm long;  tubules ca. 1 mm long;  ovary densely long-pilose with ferruginous hairs obscuring the surface;  style ca. 5.5 mm long, glabrous or distally sparsely long-pilose.  Berry known only as immature, spherical, at least 8 mm diam., sparsely long-pilose.

     Distribution (Map).  Endemic to the Venezuelan Guayana and known only from the southern parts of Auyán-tepui, in low, shrubby vegetation over rocky soils, at elevations from 1800 to 2300 m.  Flowering specimens have been collected in May, Aug, and Dec, and early fruiting in Aug.  Rare and endangered.