zvonnitsa

thumb|upright|Zvonnitsa of the Transfiguration Cathedral in Bolshiye Vyazyomy|Vyazemy, [[Moscow Oblast.]] A zvonnitsa (, ; ; ; ) is a large rectangular structure containing multiple arches or beams that support bells, and a basal platform where bell ringers stand to perform the ringing using long ropes. It was an alternative to a bell tower in Russian, Polish and Romanian medieval architectural traditions, primarily used in Russian architecture of the 14th–17th centuries. Currently, zvonnitsy are especially widespread in the environs of Pskov.

Unlike bell towers in Western Europe, zvonnitsy in Russia were generally built of brick rather than stone. As a result, they were structurally weaker, which led to new solutions in the 19th-century to address issues with structural support and sufficient suspension of the bells.