Sinan

Sinan (sēnän) [key], Muslim architect, 1489?–1578?. He is regarded as the greatest of Islamic builders, his achievement lying in his solutions to spatial problems in cupola-topped structures. He was active during the reigns of Selim I, Sulayman I, and Selim II, and in 1539 he was named court architect. His masterpieces are the mosques of Şehzâde and Sulayman I, both at Constantinople (now İstanbul), and the mosque of Selim II at Adrianople. His autobiography lists more than 300 buildings of his design.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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