A supermolecular compound [Zn(H2O)6].(C16H8O8) was synthesized with 3,3', 4,4'-bipthenyltetracarboxylic acid (H4BPTC) and Zn(CH3COO)2.2H2O. Its structure was determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction, IR and element analysis. The crystal belongs to triclinic system with space group and the cell parameters are: a = 0.65484 (13) nm, b = 0.79388 (16) nm, c = 0.96812 (19) nm, alpha = 76.29 (3) degrees, beta = 87.75 (3) degrees, gamma = 86.43 (3) degrees, Z=1, R1 = 0.0665, wR2 = 0.1833, and GOF = 1.021. We have studied the luminescence property of compound 1, The compound 1 has blue-purple luminescence in solutions of DMSO and green luminescence in the solid state at room temperature. In the solid state, the emission frequencies for complex 1 are red-shifted compared with their emission maximum peaks in solutions of DMSO. This red-shift of emission energy from solution to solid is likely to be caused by the intermolecular interaction in the solid state that effectively decreases the energy gap.