Cu-/Ag-modified polyoxometalates with 5/10/12 connections were obtained via a sulphur-assisted hydrothermal synthetic strategy.Core-shell nanostructures has been one of the hottest topics in current materials science and chemistry, not only because of their great potential applications in adsorption, separation, catalysis and photonics, but also due to their easy alteration of properties by changing the diameter, chemical composition, and crystallinity. 1-3 However, currently, there is still a lack of suitable practical models for understanding the essential properties and principles of core-shell nanostructures. As is known, in a single crystalline solid, nanosized clusters with various sizes, shapes, compositions, and structures can be regarded as ideal models for understanding the physical and chemical properties of nanoparticles and complex nanostructures. [4][5][6] In light of this point, the design and construction of nanosized clusters in crystals will provide an efficient and straightforward way to get a reasonable model for core-shell nanostructures.Polyoxometalates (POMs) have found widespread application, mainly in varied fields of analytical chemistry, catalysis, medicine and materials science. [7][8][9] They have a versatile nature, homogeneous size, controllable architecture, large negative charges, possess multiple coordination sites and the great assembly ability to construct novel