Mercury (total mercury), arsenic, cadmium, copper and nutrient concentration profiles (fourteen depths) were obtained at the ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) reference station (46-degrees-N; 6-degrees-W) in 4 680 m of water in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean. Concentrations of mercury generally ranged from 0.4 to 10 pM. The main feature of the vertical mercury profile was a broad peak between 150 and 1 500 m. Examination of the mercury profile in relation to water mass structure and comparison with nutrient and other elemental distributions suggested that its shape results from a remobilization of mercury during mineralization of sinking organic detritus combined with its intense scavenging in deeper waters.