Palazzo Ruffo della Scaletta, 17th-century palace on Riviera di Chiaia, Naples, Italy

Palazzo Ruffo della Scaletta is a 17th-century palace on Riviera di Chiaia in Naples, whose interior is dominated by an octagonal staircase crowned by a dome. The space is embellished with neoclassical stuccoes and marble statues distributed through multiple levels.

The building was initially constructed for the Carafa family and underwent significant neoclassical renovations between 1832 and 1835 under engineer Francesco Saverio Ferrari's direction. This renovation phase fundamentally changed the palace's appearance and adapted it to contemporary tastes.

The palace's name recalls the Ruffo della Scaletta family, who commissioned Guglielmo Bechi to redo the courtyard, staircase and second floor; the Carafa had built it in the 17th century. In a first-floor salon, Giuseppe Cammarano painted a Banquet of the Gods with Ganymede and Winged Figures in tempera on the ceiling, while Salvatore Giusti frescoed other rooms. The building housed the Goethe-Institut until 2012.

The palace is a private condominium and cannot be visited inside; its atrium, staircase and frescoed rooms are not open to the public. It stands on the Riviera di Chiaia and is seen from the street. The former Goethe-Institut rooms were bought in 2022 by the Associazione Costruttori Edili della Provincia di Napoli, which restored the piano nobile frescoes and the historic rear garden; between 2022 and 2024 the facades were repainted white and grey.

Tiberio Carafa kept a menagerie of wild beasts in the palace grounds, as Carlo Celano records, and staged hunts in the park. The building later housed the Goethe-Institut until 2012; the former institute premises were bought in 2022 by the Associazione Costruttori Edili della Provincia di Napoli, which restored the piano nobile frescoes and the historic rear garden.