The French mycologist Lucien Quélet gave it its current binomial name in 1872, after it was initially described as Agaricus aeruginosus by William Curtis in 1784.

At first it is a vivid blue/green, and very glutinous (slimy), with a sprinkling of white veil remnants[3] around the edge.

The colour in the gluten fades, or is washed off as it matures, and it becomes yellow ocher,[3] sometimes in patches, but mostly at the centre.

It has a fragile brown/black ring, and below this the stem is covered in fine white scales, or flakes.

[8] According to some European guidebooks the verdigris agaric is edible, but undesirable to some due to a mildly spicy taste.