The lobe on the top of the anther is short, yellow with a dark blue band and with many finger-like calli.

The side lobes have dense, mop-like tufts of white hairs.

The flowers are insect-pollinated, open on sunny days and often have the petals and sepals turned backwards.

[2][3] Thelymitra purpurata was first formally described in 1945 by Herman Rupp from a specimen collected in Brunswick Heads by Fred Fordham and the description was published in Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales.

[4][5][6] The specific epithet (purpurata) is a Latin word meaning "purple".