From the 700's utopic Wiew of Naples in Vincenzo Ruffo's Essay,to the Concept of Smart City

Abstract. starting from an additional reading of Vicenzo Ruffo's essay <<Sull'abbellimento di cui è capace la città di Napoli>>, published in 1789, we try to highlight the author's modern view of city refurbishment. Ruffo's work, thought according to the principles of the Enlightenment, frames the problems of the capital in an extremely holistic and modern view. Many of the recent projects of urban governance based on well-being and sustainability recalculate the eighteenth-century's idea of city opened to its territory. Today as in the past, the scenarios which represent the idea of an ideal city, or if you prefer Smart City, are strictly connected with the concept of urban spaces' innovation. Since the eighteenth century, Ruffo anticipated fundamental concepts, outlining an intervention plan for Naples, following social, political and economic happenings.