Crystal structures of 9-[bis­(benzyl­sulfan­yl)meth­yl]anthracene and of cyclo-dodeca­kis­(μ(2)-phenyl­methane­thiol­ato-κ(2) S:S)hexa­palladium(6 Pd—Pd)–anthracene-9,10-dione (1/1)

The first title compound, C(29)H(24)S(2), L1, represents an example of an anthracene-based functionalized di­thio­ether, which may be useful as a potential chelating or terminal ligand for coordination chemistry. This di­thio­acetal L1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group P2(1)/c. The phenyl rings of the benzyl groups and that of the anthracene unit form dihedral angles of 49.21 (4) and 58.79 (5)° and the crystal structure displays short C–H⋯π contacts. Surprisingly, when attempting to coordinate L1 to [PdCl(2)(PhCN)(2)], instead of the targeted chelate complex [PdCl(2)(κ(2)-L1)], a cleavage reaction leads to the formation of the centrosymmetric hexa­nuclear cyclic cluster of composition [Pd(6)(μ(2)-SCH(2)Ph)(12)] Pd6, or [Pd(6)(C(7)H(7)S)(12)]·C(14)H(8)O(2). This tiara-shaped hexa­mer crystallizing in the triclinic space group P [Image: see text] consists of six approximately square planar Pd(II)S(4) centers, which are inter­connected through twelve μ(2)-bridging benzyl thiol­ate groups. The Pd⋯Pd contacts range from 3.0892 (2) to 3.1609 (2) Å and can be considered as weakly bonding. The unit cell of Pd6 contains also a co-crystallized anthracene-9,10-dione mol­ecule.