Vanvitelli came to Naples first in 1700, and this is the earliest known painting of this subject, of which he evidently made a drawing that would be the basis of several later works (see G. Briganti, Gaspar Van Wittel, 1966, pp. 250-2). The Grotto at Pozzuoli was one of the principal tourist attractions in the vicinity of Naples, visited in particular not only because of its archaeological interest, but also because it is the site of Virgil's tomb (the domed structure above and to the left of the entrance).

The grotto itself, which is a tunnel some five meters high and two and a half broad, was constructed, probably as a reservoir, by Coccius Nerva in A.D. 37. It was enlarged by Alfonso d'Aragona and then by Don Pedro de Toledo, Viceroy of Naples (1532-1553). It was possible to drive through its length of over one hundred and thirty meters with a horse and carriage, and it connected Pozzuoli with Chiais, at the end of the broad sweep of the bay of Naples that now ends with Margellina. The Tomb of Virgil was of course a particularly significant place of pilgrimage for the eighteenth century tourist; the mortal remains of another of Italy's greatest poets, Giacomo Leopardi, were buried here in 1939, to the right of the entrance of the Grotta.