Piri Reis/Hadji Muhammad is one of the most eminent medieval map makers of the world. The full name of Piri Reis is Hadji Muhiddin Piri Ibn Hadji Mehmed. This man is a significant figure in the history of map making.
Hadji Muhammad was actually an Ottoman admiral. There is a confusion with the actual birthday of Hadji Muhammad. However, it is thought that he was born sometime between the years, 1465 and 1470 in a place called Gallipoli, which is located on the Dardanelles. Piri Reis is today well known for the charts and maps that he created during his time. All these charts and maps are compiled in the form of a book called Kitab-i Bahrieh, which literally means “Book of the Navy”. This book is basically written on the Mediterranean Sea.
Hadji Muhammad the cartographer rose to fame when a section of the world map that he created in 1513 was discovered in Istanbul in the year 1929. The most striking feature of this world map is the inclusion of the coastlines of the west. It is the first Turkish map that includes details of this part of the world. In the year 1528, he completed his second world map. He gifted this map to Sultan Suleyman. He died around 1554 or 1555.
