A dinuclear copper salicylate [Cu2(HSal)(Sal)(2,2′-bpy)2](ClO4) (1) (H2Sal = salicylic acid) has been synthesized and characterized with the aid of elemental analysis and infrared, ultraviolet and fluorescence spectroscopic studies. The molecular structure of 1, determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies, shows the presence of incompletely deprotonated salicylate ligands in the complex. Hydrogen bonding interactions and π-π aromatic stacking lead to the formation of 2D polymeric structure in the solid state. © 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.