The selection of celebrated mountains had been done since the Edo period. Tani Bunchō praised 90 mountains as celebrated mountains in 日本名山図会 ("A collection of maps and pictures of famous Japanese mountains"), but among these were included such small mountains as Mount Asama in Ise, Mie and Mount Nokogiri on the Bōsō Peninsula. Unsatisfied with this selection, Fukuda, who had climbed many mountains in Japan, selected 100 celebrated Japanese mountains based on a combination of grace, history, and individuality, moreover excluding mountains with an altitude of less than .