Copper (1) salts of various anions including thiolates, diethyl dithiocarbamate, diethyl dithiophosphate, trithiocyanurate, 1-cyano-3-methylisothiourea, 2-aminothiazole, and tetrakis(I-imidazolyl)borate are conveniently synthesized by reducing copper (11) sulfate in aqueous ammonia. The addition of phosphine ligands to several of the products is demonstrated, and the crystal structure Of [Cu-2(MBT)(2)(DPPE)(3)] center dot Et2O (MBT = 2-mercaptobenzothiazolate, DPPE = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane) is reported. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.