Mimar Sinan (April 15, 1489 - July 17, 1588) was the chief Ottoman architect for sultans Selim I, Suleiman I, Selim II and Murad III. He was, during a period of fifty years, responsible for the construction or the supervision of every major building in the Ottoman Empire. More than three hundred buildings are listed to his name, not including smaller ones such as Koran schools (sibyan mektebs). His masterpiece is the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, although his most famous work is the Suleiman Mosque in Istanbul. He had under him a large government department and trained many assistants, who, in turn, distinguished themselves, such as Sedefhar Mehmet Ağa, the builder of the Sultan Ahmed Mosque. He is considered the greatest architect of the classical period, compared to his Western contemporary Michelangelo. The stature of Michelangelo and his plans for the St Peter's Basilica in Rome were well-known in Istanbul, since he (and also Leonardo da Vinci) received an invitation to build a bridge over the Bosphorus