Spasskaya Tower, Gate tower on Red Square, Moscow, Russia
Spasskaya Tower rises 71 meters (233 feet) above Red Square and displays clock faces six meters (20 feet) wide on each side. The red brick walls frame the eastern gate of the Kremlin, through which visitors look onto the old fortress grounds.
Pietro Antonio Solari built the tower in 1491 as the main entrance to the Moscow Kremlin under Ivan the Great. Later, in the 17th century, craftsmen added the clock and the pointed Gothic roof that define the structure today.
The Kremlin chimes inside strike every hour and shape the rhythm of daily life in the capital. Muscovites hear the melody as a signal for important moments, especially at midnight on New Year's Day.
The gate has been closed to vehicles since 1999, though it still opens for presidential motorcades on inauguration day, Victory Day parades and the New Year's tree. Since 2016 the Kremlin Regiment mounts an hourly guard ceremony at the gate. Signal lights and guard platforms from the traffic era remain in place.
The red star on top rotates in the wind and holds an electric lamp at its center. Stalin had the imperial double-headed eagle removed in 1936 and replaced with this star, marking Soviet rule.
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