The town spread around the Priory of San Giacomo, founded in 1387 in the upper part of the Valle del Bove, the point of confluence of the lava streams from Etna's eastern craters which frequently have destroyed the town, which has always been rebuilt.
The town developed around the Priory of San Giacomo, founded in 1387 in the upper portion of the Valle del Bove, a valley where the lava streams from Etna's eastern vents regularly destroyed the town, but it was consistently rebuilt.