GL,

Possibly Scabiosa ochroleuca. Its picture looks rather similar. I suppose other composite flowers could have a similar flower form. I have even had zinnias that looked something like that.

{{gwi:9082}}
However, I don't think your mystery flower is a zinnia. There are some very fancy sunflowers nowadays, so I wouldn't rule them out.

ZM

zenman, the picture looks like a close possibility, however the link to scabiosa appears different than the large picture in your posting? hmmm
I appreciate the effort!
If you dont mind me asking, how did you get the large photo inside the 'reply' without using an url link???
Thanks!

GL,

"...however the link to scabiosa appears different than the large picture in your posting?"

Well, yes, the picture in my posting is one of my hybrid zinnias, so it isn't too surprising that it is different from the Scabiosa ochroleuca. I have included scabiosa flowered zinnias in my zinnia cross-pollinations, so some of my zinnia hybrids have scabiosa-like traits. Scabiosas and zinnias both occur in a wide variety of flower forms.

I think it would be possible to breed a strain of zinnias that had basically the same flower form as Scabiosa ochroleuca. The guard petals in my picture above were much larger than the guard petals on your "Mystery Flower." This is one of my scabiosa flowered zinnias with smaller guard petals.

{{gwi:9083}}
Even it has significant differences from your Mystery Flower. But it has some similarities, too.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did you get the large photo inside the 'reply' without using an url link?"

That is a frequently asked question. Not too surprisingly, it appears in the FAQ under the title How Do I Add Pictures to My Posted Messages?.

ZM

Can you show a picture of the back of the flower and any foliage there might be? Lots of things could look like this in close up. My guess would be an anemone flowered chrysanthemum. Does it smell of chrysanthemums?

Here is a link that might be useful: Anemone flowered chrysanthemum

Flora put forth the obvious and that is only a chrysanth has that characteristic 'mum' aroma. I've grown and breed mums by the umpteen thousand over the last quarter century and I really couldn't tell you by looking at that picture it is not a mum. It does scream scabiosa but seems to lack the pins to go in the cushion, so to speak. I am not up on flowers typically used for floral cuts anymore, gotten out of that part of the business. But if you want to know if it's a mum (and that's right up there on what I'd guess) smell it.