The solar chemical composition

We review our current knowledge of the solar chemical composition as determined from photospheric absorption lines. In particular we describe the recent significant revisions of the solar abundances as a result of the application of a time-dependent, 3D hydrodynamical model of the solar atmosphere instead of 1D hydrostatic models. This has decreased the metal content in the solar convection zone by almost a factor of two compared with the widely used compilation by Anders & Grevesse (1989). While resolving a number of long-standings problems, the new 3D-based element abundances also pose serious challenges, most notably for helioseismology.