An organic electroluminescent element comprises: a pair of electrodes; and at least one organic compound layer between the pair of electrodes, said at least one organic compound layer comprising a light-emitting layer, wherein the organic luminescent element comprises at least one complex represented by formula (1): ##STR00001## wherein M.sup.11 represents a hexacoordinate transition metal ion, Y.sup.11 represents a nitrogen atom or a substituted or unsubstituted carbon atom, L.sup.11 represents a ligand, Q.sup.11 and Q.sup.12 each represents an atomic group for forming a nitrogen-containing heterocyclic ring, n.sup.11 represents an integer of 1 to 3, n.sup.12 represents an integer of 0 to 4, X.sup.11 represents a counter ion, and n.sup.13 represents an integer of 0 to 3.