The inhibitory effects of mercury ions on the growth of barley seedlings were studied and the distribution of metal elements in the organs of treated plants was investigated by using synchrotron radiation induced X-ray emission (SRIXE). Although the treatment of mercury ions caused growth inhibition, the mercury-specific increase in variable fluorescence and the abolishment of energy-dependent quenching in broken barley chloroplasts as shown by Moon et at. (1992) were not observed in the leaves of growth-inhibited seedlings. Instead the treatment of mercury decreased Fmax and Fo values. However, Fmax/Fo ratio and photochemical and nonphotochemical quenching coefficients were not affected significantly. By SRIXE analysis of $10mu extrm{m}$ mercury chloride treated seedlings, accumulation of mercury in roots was observed after 1 hour of treatment and similar concentration was sustained for 48 hours. Relative contents of mercury was high in roots and underground nodes where seeds were attachedl but was very low in leaves. Iron and zinc were also distributed mainly in the lower parts of the seedlings. However after 72 hours of treatment the contents of these metals in roots decreased and their distribution became more uniform, which may lead to death of the plants. These results suggest that the observed inhibitory effects on barley seedlings upto 48 hours after the treatment is not due to direct damages in the photosynthetic apparatus, but due to its accumulation in roots and the consequent retardation of the growth of barley seedlings. The decrease in Fmax and Fo is probably due to the decrease in chlorophyll and protein contents caused by the retardation of growth. The observed slow expansion of primary leaves could be also explained by the retardation of growth, but the fluorescence induction pattern from the leaves did not show characteristic symptoms of leaves under water stress. KEY WORDS: barley, heavy metal distribution, mercury, growth, chlorophyll fluorescence, photochemical quenching, non-photochemical quenching, SRIXE, X-ray emission