The body is elongated, and the carapace is highly convex with three distinct keels and a serrated posterior margin. The size can reach up to 31 cm in length and 19 cm in breadth. The upper part of the carapace is jet black, featuring wedge-shaped dull yellow markings on the lower part of the costals and numerous dull yellow blotches on the marginals. The plastron is pale yellow with linear dark markings concentrated on the pectoral and abdominal scutes, almost equal in length to the carapace. It consists of paired gular, humeral, axillary, pectoral, abdominal, inguinal, femoral, and anal shields. The head is large and black, adorned with symmetrical pale yellow spots around the rounded snout, lower jaw, and behind the eye. The jaw surfaces are broad. The neck is grey with numerous white spots, and the soft skin is pink or white, while forelimbs are black with white spots. Young individuals are much brighter than adults. The forelimbs have transversely enlarged scales on the front faces. The tail is short, with wide, band-like scales. Digits are fully webbed and covered with small granular scales.