Rare earth elements 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylates were prepared as solids of the general formula Ln(C9H3O6)·nH2O, where n=6 for La-Dy and n=4 for Ho-Lu,Y. Their solubilities in water at 293 K are of the order 10-4-10-6 mol dm-3. The IR spectra of the complexes indicate that the carboxylate groups are bridging and bidentate chelates. Hydrated 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylates lose water molecules during heating in one step (La-Tb), two steps (Y, Ho-Tm) or three steps (Dy, Yb, Lu). The anhydrous complexes are stable up to 573-742 K and decompose to oxides (Ce-Lu) at higher temperatures.