Thallus crustose, areolate, the areolae to 0.5 mm broad, black, slightly shining; with black hypothallus. Apothecia to 0.5 mm broad, adnate, flat; margin persistent; exciple plectenchymatous, outer part blue-green, inward hyaline; hypothecium hyaline; epihymenium violet; hymenium 80-90 µm, upper part violet, 1+ blue; paraphyses conglutinate, 2 µm, thin-walled, simple; asci cylindrical, lacking tholus; spores simple, ellipsoid, without halo, 9—15 x 5-8 µm.

Reactions: medulla K—, C—, P—, I—; cortex C+ red; the epihymenium and other violet parts turn green with KOH.

Contents: two unknown substances reported by Hertel and Schneider (Schneider 1979).

This species grows on rocks. It is rare, known from Scotland, Scandinavia, the Alps, Novaya Zemlya, Siberia, the Narssaq District in Greenland, and in North America from the Reindeer Preserve, Northwest Territories (Ahti et al. 1973 sub Lecidea epiiodiza).