Nearly 4 centuries (735-1122) Tbilisi was under Islamic influence. Historical sources tell us that a mosque in Tbilisi has existed from VIII century AD. Thereafter the influence of Islamic culture on the lifestyle and architecture of the city was big. Located in downtown, not far from Botanical garden, the mosque was first built by the king of Kartli, Rostom (1633-1658). In XIX century a minaret of the mosque underwent a reconstruction by an Italian architect Giovanni Scudieri. There was another mosque on the left bank of river Mtkvari, in Rike, which was built in 1522 on the order of Shah of Iran, Ismail. This Shiite mosque was demolished by the communists under the pretext of reconstructing Metekhi bridge. After that both denominations of Islam (Shiites and Sunnis) pray in the Sunni mosque in Abanotubani neighborhood.