Eight alkaloids, lycorine, criwelline, crinamine, 6-hydroxycrinamine, hamayne, ismine and trisphaeridine, and the novel 3-hydroxy-8,9-methylenedioxyphenanthridine have been isolated from whole plants of Crinum firmifolium var. hygrophilum. The structure of the new phenanthridine alkaloid has been established by spectroscopic methods and confirmed by total synthesis using 6-chloropiperonal and 5-benzyloxyaniline as starting materials.