The topography of the ocean bottom near the trenches can be explained as the result of a point load fixed in space and resting on a moving lithosphere of high viscosity hydrostatically supported. The best agreement is obtained for a lithosphere approximately 120 km thick and of a viscosity approximately 1023 N s/m2 (1024 P). The tensile stress does not exceed 600 bars, which is 15 times lower than that in the elastic case.