An X-ray crystallographic study of 'meso-amavadin' revealed that in the crystal the negatively charged anionic species of the title compound join into infinite hydrogen-bonded chains, counterbalanced by cationic hydronium species. Along with water of crystallization a three-dimensional hydrogen-bonded network is formed. Based on NMR- and X-ray data of amavadin and 'meso-amavadin', a model was developed that accounts for the structure of amavadin-type complexes, i.e. vanadium(IV) non-oxo complexes that contain two ligands with a tridentate N-hydroxyiminodiacetate backbone. The model describes the different arrangements of the two ligands around the vanadium and it accounts for eventual symmetry in the complex. The model was used for the interpretation of NMR-data of an amavadin analogue with a benzyl group at the ligand backbone.