The Companions' fortunes under Uthman

ثروات الصحابة في عهد عثمان

al-Mas'udi's famous wealth-register: Uthman's own millions and estates, al-Zubayr's multi-city houses and thousand horses, Talha's daily thousand-dinar yield and the Kunnasa palace, Ibn 'Awf's 100 horses and 10,000 sheep, Sa'd's 'Aqiq castle, Zayd's axe-split gold, Ya'la's half-million — set against Umar's sixteen-dinar hajj and 'we were extravagant' 1.

Depth

At a glance

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The poor and the workerTrade and finance

Overview

Al-Masudi records what a group of the Companions acquired in the days of Uthman, and sets it against the condition of Umar. 2

What he records

Uthman himself left, with his treasurer, a hundred and fifty thousand dinars and a million dirhams, and his estates in the valley of al-Qura and Hunayn were worth a hundred thousand dinars. Al-Zubayr built houses in Basra, Egypt, Kufa, and Alexandria, and left fifty thousand dinars, a thousand horses, and a thousand slaves, male and female. Talha's income from Iraq was a thousand dinars a day, and his house in Kufa was al-Kunasa. Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf (may God be pleased with him)'s wealth, when a quarter of it was valued, came to eighty-four thousand, and he had a hundred horses, a thousand camels, and ten thousand sheep. Sa'd built the palace of al-'Aqiq. Zayd ibn Thabit (may God be pleased with him) left gold and silver that was broken with axes. Ya'la ibn Munya left five hundred thousand dinars. 2

Comparison with Umar

He sets this against Umar, who spent sixteen dinars on his pilgrimage and said: "We have been extravagant." 3

These are al-Masudi's figures alone, and they need a further source.

People and things also explored

The economic condition of the Arabs before Islam· Al-Madina Souq, Aleppo· Bazaar of Tabriz· Khan el-Khalili· Al-Hamidiyah Souq· Souq Waqif· Elephant's sweat (musth perfume)· The silent trade

Sources

  1. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi, p. 628-629
  2. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi, p.628
  3. Muruj al-Dhahab — al-Masʼudi, p.629
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The Companions' fortunes under Uthman”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/tharwat-al-sahaba/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.

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The economic condition of the Arabs before Islam

In al-Raheeq al-Makhtum's account the economy followed the social condition: trade was the chief means of livelihood and needed a security found only in the sacred months, when the fairs of Ukaz, Dhu al-Majaz and Majanna were held; crafts such as weaving and tanning belonged to Yemen, al-Hira and the Syrian marches, while the interior had farming, herding and women's spinning, goods were prey to war, and poverty, hunger and nakedness were general.