Pretoro

Pretoro (locally Pretèure) is a town of about 1,100 inhabitants situated in Majella National Park, in the province of Chieti, Abruzzo, southern Italy. It is located on a steep hillside on the eastern side of the Maiella mountains. Its proximity to Passo Lanciano-La Majelletta ski area, guarantees the availability of winter sports, while the town is also only 20 minutes by car from the Adriatic Sea. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia ("The most beautiful villages of Italy").

==History== The area in which Pretoro is located has been occupied since prehistoric times; remains from that period have been found here, as well as inscriptions in Latin from the Roman era. The first documented mention of the town is in a 12th-century record. Pretoro's name may derive from the word "preta", an earlier form of the word "pietra" or stone. The town stands on a rocky landscape that does not lend itself to farming. Because the town is surrounded by beech-forest, the people of Pretoro have specialized over the centuries in woodcarving.