A gold cluster, Au-41(S-Eind)(12), was synthesized by ligating the bulky arenethiol 1,1,3,3,5,5,7,7-octaethyl-s-hydrindacene-4-thiol (Eind-SH) to preformed Au clusters. Extended X-ray absorption fine structure, Xray photoelectron spectroscopy, and the fragmentation pattern in the mass spectrometry analysis indicated that formation of gold thiolate oligomers at the interface was suppressed, in sharp contrast to conventional thiolate-protected Au clusters.