The fortified village of Pettorano sul Gizio (625 m. asl, municipal population about 1,250), rightly included in the prestigious club of "The Most Beautiful Villages in Italy," rises, in a magnificent natural setting, on the Colle della Guardiola, overlooking the Gizio River. The municipal territory, included in the Majella National Park area, in turn encloses the Monte Genzana and Alto Gizio Nature Reserve.
The origins of the village date back to the fourth century BC. C. and the Latin writer Pliny records it as "Pagus Fabianus." In the Middle Ages it had considerable development under the rule of the ducal family of Cantelmo.
The inhabited nucleus, dominated by the majestic Cantelmi Castle (14th-15th cent.) with its imposing pentagonal tower, preserves intact several gateways and is rich in numerous monuments and palaces, among which the Ducal Palace (16th-17th cent.), in whose atrium (today Piazza Zannelli) is located the stupendous 16th-century fountain; the beautiful church of St. Dionysus; and the magnificent monumental fountain in Piazza Umberto I.
