The tondo with a nude Dionysus lunging to the right but looking back, a chlamys draped over his shoulders, bejeweled in beaded bandoliers and a thigh band, a wreath in his hair, a tympanum in his lowered right hand, a staff in his left, enclosed within a border of ivy and berries, laurel on the exterior, details in added white and yellow. This kylix, published by Arthur Dale Trendall, has been attributed to the peak of the artistic production of the Painter of Naples 1778.

The Painter of Naples 1778 was one of the chief artists working in the Paestan fabric in the last quarter of the 4th century BCE, along with the Painter of Naples 2585, with whom he may have shared a workshop. His earliest work has been dated to around 330-320 BCE. He decorated vases of many different shapes, but seemed to favour lekanides, lebetes gamikoi, and squat lekythoi. His subjects are frequently associated with Dionysus, Eros, or bridal preparations, and he also painted the last two vases with phlyax scenes that are known from Paestum. Excavations within the second half of the 20th century have allowed scholars to trace the development of his career in more detail than was previously possible. He seems to have been influenced by the work of Python, the Aphrodite Painter and the Boston Orestes Painter, but also by the Campanian group including the Laghetto Painter, the Painter of B.M. F 63, and the Caivano Painter; the latter is cited as the most powerful influence on the Painter of Naples 1778. The Caivano Painter seems to have been active from around 340 BCE to 320 BCE, and is thought to have worked in Paestum for a time. The Painter of Naples 1778 seems to take inspiration from the Caivano Painter and his associates in his rendering of drapery, particularly in his drawing of fold-lines, as well as his choice of decorative elements. One of the most distinctive decorations used by the Painter of Naples 1778 is a stylised single palmette-leaf, which appears in the majority of his works and has been taken as almost an equivalent to a signature. This is derived from a motif used by the Caivano Painter, but the rendering of the stem differs. Despite the strong influence of the Caivano Painter, the Painter of Naples 1778 retains a distinctively Paestan style.

Paestum, a city located near the Tyrrhenian Sea in the Campania region of Southern Italy, was founded in around 600 BC by Greek settlers. Strabo writes that at the end of the 5th century BC, the city was conquered by the Lucanians, a neighbouring Italic tribe. It remained under Lucanian control until 273 BC, when it became a Roman colony following the Pyrrhic War. It is known for its archaeological remains, including three incredibly well-preserved Greek Doric temples, two dedicated to Hera and one to Athena, as well as its painted tombs. It is also renowned for being the source of one of the five main regional styles of South Italian vase painting (the others being Lucanian, Apulian, Campanian, and Sicilian). The vases have been found primarily in tombs in Paestum itself and the surrounding area.

Paestan fabric has been described as “probably the most consistent” out of these five styles, with the key features remaining the same throughout its period of production (the 4th century BC), aside from during the Apulianising phase, towards the end of the century. The bell-krater is the most popular shape, and its Paestan variation is distinguished by a near-cylindrical body, with tall, straight sides. Other common shapes include hydriai, neck-amphorae, lebetes gamikoi, lekanides, squat lekythoi, choes and skyphoi. Paestan clay can be identified by a particularly high mica content, and the orange-brown colour that it fires to (as opposed to e.g. Campanian clay, which is more of a light brown colour).

Dionysiac themes are popular on Paestan vases. The god himself is usually represented holding a thyrsus and wearing an ivy wreath, and is sometimes accompanied by one of his followers, such as a satyr or a maenad.