CACrown ArchivesThe cinema collection
Menu
Research dossier · Science & Nature

Phyteuma orbiculare

species of plant

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
Science and natureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionFeb 17, 2026
Entity authorityQ63598 ↗
Source-derived summary

Phyteuma orbiculare, common name round-headed rampion or Pride of Sussex, is a herbaceous perennial plant of the genus Phyteuma belonging to the family Campanulaceae.

Description

Phyteuma orbiculare reaches on average 20–50 centimetres (7.9–19.7 in) of height. A deep blue, almost purple wildflower that is not as it seems: each head, rather than being a single bloom, is actually a collection of smaller ones, huddled together.

The stem is erect, simple, glabrous and striated, the leaves vary in shape on a single plant, with larger, broader, ovate to lanceolate, serrated, petiolated leaves at the base of the stem and smaller, narrower, lanceolate to linear cauline leaves. The head-shaped inflorescence is a dense erect panicle of about 1.5–3 centimetres (0.59–1.18 in) of diameter, with usually 15 to 30 flowers. The petals are blue or violet-blue and form small tubes with an opening at the top. The outer bracts are lanceolate and usually two to four times longer than wide. The flowering period extends from May to August. The fruit is a capsule containing numerous small seeds.

Distribution

This plant is widespread in most of Europe from the Pyrenees to the Balkans.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Phyteuma orbiculare” is species of plant. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Phyteuma, orbiculare and species, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA sound reference starting point where classification, measurement and the date of the underlying evidence remain visible. The current 189-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. For this dossier, Phyteuma, orbiculare and species is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “species of plant” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q63598. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.

Critical limits

Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Phyteuma orbiculare”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Phyteuma orbiculare primary sources, Phyteuma orbiculare archive and Phyteuma research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Phyteuma orbiculare”?
  2. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
  3. Is the terminology current, historical or disputed?
Subject index

Search terms from this dossier

Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Phyteuma orbiculare” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.