The electronic transitions of 9,10-bis(phenylethynyl)anthracene (BPEA) were investigated by synchrotron radiation linear dichroism (SRLD) spectroscopy in the range 20000-58000 cm(-1) (500-170 nm) on molecular samples aligned in stretched polyethylene. The investigation was supported by variable temperature spectroscopy and by quantum chemical calculations in the LCOAO and TD-DFT models. The combined experimental and theoretical evidence leads to characterization of several previously unobserved transitions and provides a revised polarization analysis of the visible absorption band of BPEA. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.