Object Number: Mb4452

Collection: Eastern Art

Object Name: woodblock print

Title: The Hollow of the Deep Sea Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa-oki nami ura 神奈川沖浪裏)

Artist: Hokusai, Katsushika

Description: Also known as The Great Wave or the Hollow of the Deep-sea Wave off Kanagawa. Signed: Hokusai aratame Iitsu hitsu, Publisher: Nishimuraya Yohachi (Eijudō). Tropical storms are common in the seas off Japan, particularly in late summer. The small, solid form of Mount Fuji contrasts with the surging waves. Fishermen in the three boats flatten to stay on board. Scholars Julian H.E. Cartwright and Hisami Nakamura have studied he image in detail and concluded that the large wave is a type known as a 'plunging breaker', not a tsunami caused by an earthquake or volcanic eruption. They estimate that the wave shown would have been between tena and twelve metres high.