What do purple orchids symbolize?

Both the color purple and orchids are symbolic of luxury. Depending on the variety, orchids can also symbolize beauty, fragrance, industry, gaiety and mature charm. Purple can also symbolize power, good judgment and spiritual refinement.

Florigraphy, or the language of flowers, began in the Victorian Era. By using specific types, colors and arrangements of flowers, people could communicate emotions. The most widely accepted early guides to florigraphy were Charlotte de la Tour's "Le Language des Fleurs" and Miss Corruthers' "The Language of Flowers." Because these and later writers did not always agree with one another, many flowers came to have multiple meanings, some of them contradictory.