Shell size without spines large for the genus. The shape is flattened with convex whorls. The body whorl takes about half of the total shell height. Protoconch very small and in the same plane of the first whorl. Transition to the shell visible. On the very first whorls there is a very fine axial sculpture, only visible by magnification. The suture is deep and easy to distinguish. On the third whorl, a fine sculpture of 3 or 4 lines start near the lower part of the whorl, near the suture. They are grouped together where there was earlier a spine. Also on the third whorl, a fine sculpture of rounded beads, very small, appears just below the suture. They disappear in all three specimens on the last whorl, one specimen even has no sculpture at all on the last whorl. On the later whorls, there is a subsutural thickening. On the body whorl the shells are almost smooth: there is a light sculpture caused by growth lines. Near the keel, just above the spines, again a fine sculpture of irregular microstriae.
The spines on the body whorl number 7, 8 and 9 in the shells known. These spines are broad compared to the spines in other species, hollow and the fold is situated in the plane of the keel or raised upwards. On the base the shell is smooth, only small growth lines are visible. The umbilicus is covered with a thick white path, and this umbilical callus is bordered by a small groove where it touches the base of the shell. The umbilical callus follows the shape of the underlying umbilicus, giving rise to a false umbilicus. The aperture is pearly inside but its periphery is not covered, the outer layer of the golden-brown last whorl projects over the mother of pearl. The colour of the shell is a golden brown with small darker irregular flamules that follow the growth lines. On the base white with some dark streaks near the keel between the spines.
Holotype: Height 21.6 mm. Diameter without spines: 40.8 mm. Diameter with spines 77.1mm.

-100-200171, By tangle net, Tinina, Balut Island, Davao, Philippines, 89.4mm., 2014/viii
The « Superb Star Turban » is a very beautiful turbinid recently described from Philippines where it is endemic to, and is best known from Davao Region, Mindanao. It is most similar to Guildfordia yoka Jousseaume, 1888, especially the golden deep-water form, but differs significantly in lacking most sculpture on the dorsum except one or two weak rows of pustules adjacent to the suture. The dorsum is thus rather glossy and is often decorated with patterns in the form of brown lines. The shell itself is large for the genus and its spines are proportionally shorter than G. yoka. It is presumed to be a bottom grazing / detritus ingesting gastropod and inhabits sandy to gravelly to muddy bottoms of rather deep water around -100~300m. It was considered rare for a few years since its original description but now it is being brought up more often by deep-water tangle nets and perhaps best described as locally uncommon. Typical shell length including spines around 75mm., very large specimens may exceed 90mm.

G. superba n. sp. is here compared with the only species with which it can be confused: G. yoka Jousseaume, 1899, and especially with the subspecies G. yoka delicata Habe & Okutani, 1983. The presence of a strong pearly sculpture on a red-brown coloured shell will readily distinguish G. yoka delicata. The body size compared to the length of the spines is smaller in G. yoka delicata, the spines are more slender, very thin and their fold is not raised, but meets much lower than in G. superba. The false umbilicus of G. yoka delicata is not concave as in G. yoka yoka, except in young specimens, but flat. Adult G. superba show a deep pit. Around the umbilical path, G. yoka delicata often has a fine sculpture of radiating axial ribs that disappear towards the spines, this is completely absent in G. superba. In many specimens of G. yoka delicata, the thin and more slender spines are coloured dark: in G. superba they are white or very lightly tinted.

The Philippines, Balut Island.Only known from the type locality. Shells were taken with tangle nets that are usually set on a depth of 150 m.