Rembrandt's etching represents a revolutionary approach to landscape. A full three-quarters of the composition consists of negative space, a sky without a wisp of clouds, a setting sun, or a bird in flight. The pictorial structure is lacking in traditional framing devices, and the extraordinarily low placement of the horizon emphasizes the flatness of the Dutch landscape, its most distinctive feature. The skyline is an essentially faithful transcription of the view of Amsterdam from its northeastern outskirts.