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Palazzo Barberini's Secret?
Worth knowing that door sits right where Bernini's original project for the second floor was meant to link the two wings, and the passage you spotted is likely a remnant of that never-quite-finished circulation plan. The Barberini kept changing architects mid-build, Maderno died in 1629 and Bernini took over, so parts of the interior were left as compromises rather than clean designs. If you're genuinely curious, the Soprintendenza has published floor plans from the 1930s restoration that show exactly where those openings were cut, and they're viewable by appointment at their archive on Via di San Michele. Less romantic than a secret passage, but it explains the odd placement better than any ghost story.
There's a decent chance that door isn't even original to the gallery layout. The Barberini collection got split between here and the Vatican in the 1930s under the legge sulla alienazione, and some of the interior walls were reshuffled when the state took over in 1949. A little unmarked door off the Raphael room could just be a leftover from that reorganization rather than anything the Barberini themselves used. Next time you're there, look at the doorframe: if the stone surround doesn't match the wall plaster, it was cut later.
I used to work events in that wing and can confirm those doors mostly lead to the old scalone di servizio, the service stairs. Palazzo Barberini has two of them, one off the Raphael room and another near the Pietro da Cortona ceiling, both built so the household could move between floors without crossing the piano nobile. You won't find a secret chamber back there, just narrow stone steps and a corridor that eventually dead-ends at a locked door onto Via delle Quattro Fontane. If you're curious about the building's hidden layers, the guided tours on weekend mornings sometimes include the sottotetto, which is far more interesting than that little door.
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What are current tobacco prices for LM Blue or Chesterfield Blue?
tbh duty free at Riga is only worth it if you're buying cartons, single packs at the airport arent that much cheaper than teh tabaccai in Rome. also remember you can only bring a limited amount into the EU anyway so stockpiling has its limits
Chesterfield Blue usually runs around 5.50 to 6 euros a pack in Rome these days, though tabaccai prices are fixed by the state so it won't vary much shop to shop. Riga is generally cheaper for cigarettes but your layover time matters, if it's tight you might not have time to clear security and find a shop.
LM Blue in Rome is roughly the same ballpark, around 5.50 to 6 euros. One thing to keep in mind at Riga airport, the duty free selection isn't always great for specific brands like these, so if you're set on LM or Chesterfield you might strike out. I'd check what the actual duty free has before counting on it.