  thumb|275px|a marian grotto in bischofferode (germany) a grotto (italian grotta and french grotte) is any type of natural or artificial cave that is associated with modern, historic, or prehistoric use by humans. when it is not an artificial garden feature, a grotto is often a small cave near water and often flooded or liable to flood at high tide. the picturesque grotta azzurra at capri and the grotto of the villa of tiberius in the bay of naples are outstanding natural seashore grottoes. whether in tidal water or high up in hills, they are very often in limestone geology where the acidity dissolved in percolating water has dissolved the carbonates of the rock matrix as it has passed through what were originally small fissures. see karst topography, cavern. in modern times, many people purchase artificial grottos for ornamental and devotional purposes when it comes to placing statues of saints, particularly the blessed virgin, in outdoor gardens. the well-known apparitions of our lady of lourdes to bernadette soubirous took place in a grotto, which is visited by many catholics. numerous garden shrines are modeled after these apparitions, and can commonly be found displayed in gardens and churches, among other places (see lourdes grotto). mantic springs that issued from grottoes were a feature of apollo's oracles at delphi, corinth, and clarus.g. w. elderkin, "the natural and the artificial grotto", hesperia 10.2 (april â june 1941), pp. 125â137, gives numerous well-known ancient greek examples, natural and architectural, with some details of their sites. the new-built hellenistic city of rhodes was provided with rock-cut artificial grottos with "naturalistic" features.e. e. rice, "grottoes on the acropolis of hellenistic rhodes", the annual of the british school at athens 90 (1995), pp. 383â404. at the great roman sanctuary of praeneste south of rome, the oldest portion of the primitive sanctuary was situated on the next-to-lowest terrace, in a grotto in the natural rock where there was a spring that developed into a well. such a sacred spring had its native nymph, who might be honored in a grotto-like nymphaeum, where the watery element was never far to seek.a.r.a. van aken, "some aspects of nymphaea in pompeii, herculaneum and ostia" mnemosyne, fourth series, 4.3/4 (1951), pp. 272â284  tiberius filled his grotto with sculptures to recreate a mythological setting, perhaps polyphemus' cave in the odyssey. the numinous quality of the grotto is sti
Architectural_elements Art_history Cave_geology Folklore Garden_features Grottoes Landforms Landscape_design_history Landscape_gardens Subterranea_(geography)