Compared with other cones, C. gloriamaris is relatively large, slender, with a tall spire.

It is finely reticulated with orange-brown lines, enclosing triangular spaces similar to other textile cones, and two or three bands of chestnut hieroglyphic markings across its body.

For about two centuries between its initial discovery and the discovery of its habitat in 1969, specimens were valued in the thousands of U.S. dollars and generally only owned by museums and wealthy private collectors.

Improvements in diving technology such as the advent of scuba led to their discovery in larger numbers, and today shells can often be found from retailers or online auction sites for less than $100 U.S.

It is found principally off the Solomon Islands but with a habitat ranging from the Philippines and eastern Indonesia, through New Guinea, and as far east as Samoa and Fiji.