Selim, Mosque Of

Edirne, Turkey: Mosque of Selim

Mosque of Selim, Turkish Selimiye Cami, monumental mosque, Edirne, Turkey. It is considered to be the masterwork of the great Ottoman architect Sinan. The mosque lies at the summit of rising ground and dominates the city’s skyline.

Construction began in 1569, during the reign of the sultan Selim II, and was completed in 1575, the year after his death. The mosque’s main structure consists of a succession of 18 small domes dominated by a huge central dome. Beneath the main dome, which is supported by eight columns placed close to the walls—an innovation at the time—is the sanctuary, a large square space. Four tall, slender, three-balconied minarets on the structure’s corners contrast with the mass of domes and half-domes. The mosque forms an architectural whole, with adjacent complementary buildings, including a school, a library, and a theological college, now housing archaeological and ethnographic museums. The entire complex was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2011.