# Grotto of Pausillipo

- By: Louis Jean Desprez (Auxerre, 1743–1804)
- By: Francesco Piranesi (Rome, 1758–1810)
- Date: 1768 - 1804
- Medium: paper, watercolor (paint), gouache (paint)
- Classification: print
- Dimensions: height 690 mm x width 470 mm
- Credit line: Purchased with the support of the F.G. Waller-Fonds
- Museum: [Rijksmuseum](https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/object/RP-P-1968-19--e737e888f6fbe972ec949b2f3d6b81cd)
- Rights: [Public Domain Mark](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/)
- Picture: https://iiif.micr.io/KGaAL/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

The grotto of Pausillipo was a tunnel built during the 1st century BC as a passageway between Naples and Pozzuoli. Still in use in the 18th century, it was a major attraction for travellers and artists. Desprez brought out the best in its eerie ambience. The flickering torchlights reveal its high vaulted ceiling, inhabited by nocturnal birds, while the figures are dwarfed by the colossal architecture.