Soaring toward the heavens, the vast Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, Turkey, represents the pinnacle of [court architect] Sinan's achievement. Light flooding through curtain walls illuminates geometric designs, arabesques, and phrases from the Koran. The mosque was built by Sinan in the 1570s for Selim II, Süleyman's son and successor. Born in a Christian village in Anatolia, Sinan rose through the devsirme system, whereby Ottomans brought promising Christian youths to the court in Istanbul. They were educated, converted to Islam, and trained as Janissaries—elite infantry—or as administrators.

—From "The World of Süleyman the Magnificent," November 1987, National Geographic magazine