Nucleophilic ringopening of oxiranes 1 and 2 by the carbanion AH− (“anthracene hydride”) proceeds rapidly giving rise to two isomeric products 3 and 5 from styreneoxide 1. In prolonged reactions, products with a 9-benzyl 9,10-dihydroanthracene structure (5, 6) are fragmented by an excess of carbanion to yield anthracene A and benzylic anions. The respective products 7 and 8 of reductiveopening can be