<P> The composition comprises three main elements: the sea whipped up by a storm, three boats and a mountain . It includes the signature in the upper left - hand corner . </P> <P> The mountain with a snow - capped peak is Mount Fuji, which in Japan is considered sacred and a symbol of national identity, as well as a symbol of beauty . Mount Fuji is an iconic figure in many Japanese representations of famous places (meisho - e), as is the case in Hokusai's series of Thirty - six Views of Mount Fuji, which opens with the present scene . </P> <P> The dark color around Mount Fuji seems to indicate that the scene occurs early in the morning, with the sun rising from behind the observer, illuminating the mountain's snowy peak . While cumulonimbus storm clouds seem to be hanging in the sky between the viewer and Mount Fuji, no rain is to be seen either in the foreground scene or on Mount Fuji, which itself appears completely cloudless . </P> <P> In the scene there are three oshiokuri - bune, fast boats that are used to transport live fish from the Izu and Bōsō peninsulas to the markets of the bay of Edo . As the name of the piece indicates the boats are in Kanagawa prefecture, with Tokyo to the north, Mt Fuji to the northwest, the bay of Sagami to the south and the bay of Tokyo to the east . The boats, oriented to the southeast, are returning to the capital . </P>

Where was the great wave off kanagawa made