Turkish Mimar Sinan, pronounced 1488/1490
– July 17, 1588 was the chief Ottoman architect and civil engineer for sultans Suleiman the Magnificent, Selim II,
and Murad III.
Known as Koca Mi’mâr Sinân Âğâ, “Sinan Agha the Grand Architect”, he
was responsible for the construction of more than 300 major structures and
other more modest projects, such as schools. His apprentices would later design
the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul and Stari Most in Mostar.

The
son of a stonemason, he received a technical education and became a military
engineer.

He rose rapidly through the ranks to become first an officer and
finally a Janissary commander, with the honorific title of ağa.[1] He
refined his architectural and engineering skills while on campaign with the
Janissaries, becoming expert at constructing fortifications of all kinds, as
well as military infrastructure projects, such as roads, bridges and aqueducts.

At
about the age of fifty, he was appointed as chief royal architect, applying the
technical skills he had acquired in the army to the “creation of fine
religious buildings” and civic structures of all kinds.

He
remained in this post for almost fifty years.

His
masterpiece is the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne,
although his most famous work is the Suleiman
Mosque in Istanbul. He headed an extensive governmental department and
trained many assistants who, in turn, distinguished themselves, including Sedefkar Mehmed Agha, architect of
the Sultan Ahmed Mosque.

He is
considered the greatest architect of the classical period of Ottoman architecture and
has been compared to Michelangelo, his contemporary in the West.

Michelangelo
and his plans for St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome were
well known in Istanbul, since Leonardo da
Vinci and he had been invited, in 1502 and 1505 respectively,
by the Sublime Porte to submit plans for a
bridge spanning the Golden Horn.

Mimar
Sinan’s works are among the most influential buildings in history

Works:

–Süleymaniye Mosque
–Selimiye Mosque
–Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge
–Mihrimah Sultan Mosque
–Mihrimah
Mosque
–Kılıç Ali Pasha Complex
–Şehzade Mosque
–Haseki Hürrem Sultan Baths
–Haseki Sultan Complex
–Sokollu Mehmet Pasha Mosque