  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.
