Purple-shot Copper; Manto púrpura

The alciphron male has a violet suffusion all over the upperside, giving the species its name. The colouring of the males and the females is very different, i.e. the sexual dimorphism is very strong. The top sides of the wings are red-gold with black spots. The males fluoresce purple, while the females' top side is brown, also with black spots. The rear wings have submarginal spots. The female alciphron is basically dark brown with the usual female copper upper forewing black markings in the cell and post-discal areas with distinctive upper hindwing orange marginal lunules. Females have a more curved shape of the hindwing base (as compared to the slightly square shape of the male).

The caterpillar is nocturnal and eats sorrel. The fully grown butterfly feeds from wild thyme, ground-elder, and blackberry flowers.