The unequal, curved spines are brownish to yellowish and 3 to 5 centimeters long.

The short to long tube-funnel-shaped flowers appear laterally on the upper parts of the shoots.

The reddish green fruits are hairy and reach a diameter of up to 1.2 centimeters[3] Echinopsis maximiliana is widespread in the Peruvian regions of Apurímac, Cusco and Puno as well as in the Bolivian departments of La Paz and Cochabamba in the Lake Titicaca basin at altitudes of 3000 to 4800 meters.

The first description as Echinopsis maximiliana by Albert Gottfried Dietrich was published in 1846.

[4] The specific epithet maximiliana honors a friend of Edward Heyder's who died too early named Maximilian.