This important example of Soviet Georgian architecture situated on Rustaveli avenue was the former home of the USSR’s government in Georgia. The oldest part of the building was erected in 1953. It is faced with 16 columns, representing the 16 Soviet states of the USSR. In 2011 the Georgian parliament voted to remove Soviet icons from public display and a lot of carved hammers and sickles and other Soviet symbols were removed from the facades of old buildings, including the Parliament itself. The actual Parliament of Georgia has moved to Kutaisi, where a new home was built for it between 2011-2012.