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Sinan builds the Selimiye Mosque at Edirne

سنان يبني جامع السليمية بأدرنة

1569 CE · c. 977 AH – 1575 CE · 982 AH

Edirne

The architect Sinan built the Selimiye mosque complex at Edirne in 1569-75 for Selim II, who died the year before it was completed; Sinan himself considered it the crowning achievement of his career, surpassing even the Süleymaniye in Istanbul 1. Its great dome stands six cubits higher than that of Ayasofya 2.

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Gunpowder Empires
Region
Anatolia

In time

1560157015801590
The Gunpowder Empires

In space

Edirne

Map: Natural Earth, public domain · places and route from the graph

Overview

Sinan built the Selimiye at Edirne in 1569-75 for Selim II, considering it the crowning achievement of his career 1.

Sinan's masterwork

Its dome, resting on eight piers, stands six cubits higher than the dome of Ayasofya, and four three-balconied minarets rise at the four corners of the courtyard 2.

Connections

Explore the connections

Occurred at
Selimiye Mosque, Edirne· Edirne
Had participant
Selim II· Mimar Sinan
During the reign of
Selim II· مراد الثالث

People and things also explored

Istanbul· Hundred Years' Croatian–Ottoman War· Serbian–Ottoman Wars· Ottoman Empire· Selimiye Mosque, Edirne· Mimar Sinan· مراد الثالث· Selim II

Sources

  1. John Freely, A History of Ottoman Architecture (2011) , p. 73
  2. Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd edition (Leiden: Brill, 1954–2008), 13 volumes , vol. 2 p. 712
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Sinan builds the Selimiye Mosque at Edirne”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/selimiye-edirne-977/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-09.

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Istanbul

Istanbul was the capital of the Ottoman Empire from its conquest on 20 Jumada I 857/29 May 1453 until 1342/1923. In strict Ottoman usage the name covered only the area between the Golden Horn, the Marmara coast and the land wall. The city grew through endowed complexes built by sultans and viziers, such as the Fatih and the Suleymaniye, and through quarters formed around mosques; Muslims, Christians and Jews lived there, and fires, earthquakes and plague struck it repeatedly.