The Holy Danilov Monastery, the oldest in Moscow, was founded by Prince Daniel Alexandrovich. Above its northern gate rises the Church of St. Simeon Stylites, which also serves as the monastery's bell tower. This architectural ensemble shapes the appearance of the square in front of the monastery and creates a solemn entrance to the abode, known for its unique bell ringing.

The stone fence of the monastery was first built in the 16th century by order of Ivan the Terrible and was then repeatedly rebuilt. The northern part of the walls was reconstructed in 1681 during the reign of Tsar Feodor Alexeyevich, and it was then that the current gates appeared. The Church of St. Simeon Stylites and the bell tower above it were built in 1731-1732.

The lower part of the ensemble, consisting of three-arch gates with a large arch in the center and two smaller side arches (now bricked up), is richly decorated with balusters and moldings. The Church of St. Simeon Stylites, built later, appears more modest. Above the square base rises an octagonal bell tower with arched openings for the belfry, topped with two octagonal domes with onion-shaped cupolas. In 1890, a hospital for monks of the Moscow diocese was built inside the monastery, and the Church of St. Simeon became a hospital church. The 18 bells of the Danilov belfry were of particular value, the oldest of which dated back to 1682. This set was considered one of the best and most melodic in Moscow.

In the early 1930s, after the monastery was closed, the bell tower was demolished, but the space of the Simeon Church and the gates beneath it were preserved. The Danilov bells were intended for melting down, but instead were sold for scrap metal to American diplomat Charles Crane and remained at Harvard University until 2007. The church's decor was completely lost, and it housed living quarters for a juvenile detention colony that occupied the entire former monastery territory. Only after the revival of the Danilov Monastery as an active abode and patriarchal residence in 1983 did restoration begin, culminating in 1988 with the reconstruction of the bell tower in its former appearance. In 2007, after lengthy negotiations, the bells were returned from Harvard University in exchange for exact copies.