Methyl 5,6-dimeth-oxy-1H-indole-2-carboxyl-ate.

The title compound, C(12)H(13)NO(4), was prepared as a precursor to an indole derivative with possible anti-mitotic properties. The mol-ecule is very nearly planar; the maximum deviation of any non-H atom from the mean plane of the indole ring is 0.120†(3)†à for each of two meth-oxy C atoms. The pairs of mol-ecules related by the inversion centre at (0,0,) are connected by two symmetry-equivalent N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds, while the pairs of mol-ecules related by the inversion centre at (0,0,0) exhibit a π-stacking inter-action of the indole rings, with an inter-planar separation of 3.39†(3)†à .