As both it common names and specific epithet suggest, the cup-shaped fruiting bodies are violet colored on the interior surface.

They do not have a stem (or at most a short, narrowed version), and may be up to 3 centimetres (1.2 in) wide by 1–1.5 cm tall, although they are often much smaller.

The spores are elliptical, smooth, hyaline, without any oil droplets (eguttulate), with dimensions of 16–17 × 8–10 μm.

[4] The paraphyses are club-shaped, filled with violet granules, and have curved tips; they are up to 8 μm wide.

[6] The closely related Peziza praetervisa is also violet-colored and prefers growing on burned ground.