I’m still reading Agapius, and he relates how Yezdegerd, the last Sassanid ruler, was murdered at Merv by a miller while hiding from the Arabs. The Arab commander, Sa`id, sent his head and crown to the Caliph Othman, who displayed his head on a pillar, and placed the crown in the Kaabah “where it is to this day.”
Is the crown of the Sassanids really still at Mecca today?
First, as fundamental fact I agree that history is distorted.
Second, I’d like to know the above mentioned incident source! whereas Muslims’ history mentioned the defeat of the Sassanid in two major battles, followed with many combats,Hence two questions:
Which Agapius in the topic!? What’s the topic source possible date?
There many people believe that Kaaba contains Treasures of so & so, & I did some research in what is the possibility of claimed “Kaaba treasures”. What might be there can be categorized only as “valuable” gifts which has been denoted by remarkable visitors thought the 1300+ years.
Then, what can we expect from the mentioned statement! it’s not true that there are treasures inside due the fact that space of kaaba isnot that wide to contain “treasures”. See kaaba pic on the net.
Also kaaba has been rebuilt totally many times, then it’s impossible & impractical to keep something valuable during that times.
A final word, we as being logical scholars in our fields & others fields, must be more cautious when it comes to “exaggerated” historical events with particularity to people religions & believes. So back to main point was there any crown? Is there any other Sassanid crown or royal treasures? Similarly for any civilization like Greeks & Romans as in comparison to Sassanid civilization.
Many thanks for your comment, which is interesting.
The source is Agapius (Mahboub ibn Qustantin), and you can find him in Arabic and French at Archive.org if you search for “Patrologia Orientalis” and select volume 8.
All the points you make are interesting. It sounds as if Agapius may be recounting a folk tale — he lives 3 centuries later, after all.
Under not in. Masons have a map and prophecy about it
On 5 Nov 96, received an e-mail re:”Treasure of the Kaaba.” I came across this related quote that may be helpful from pages 215-8 of the recent first volume of TAFSIR IBN KATHIR, abridged by Sheikh Muhammad Nasib ar-Rifa’i, published by al-Firdous Ltd. London 1996:
[–Start Quote]
Quraysh’s Construction of the House (Ka’bah) After Abraham (as) and Before the Rise of Muhammad (saws)
Five years before the appointment of Muhammad (saws) as the final Prophet, the Quraysh unanimously agreed to demolish the House and rebuild it to make it stronger. They agreed among themselves that the money spent towards its re-construction should come from lawful means only and that they would prohibit taking a prostitute’s dowry for it or dealing in usury for it, or money taken from someone unjustly. Up to that point, the House had been divided into several partitions belonging to the different tribes of the Quraysh. Each group had its own space or corner.
All members of the Quraysh dreaded demolishing the House and so they avoided it. Al-Walid Ibn al-Mughira offered to begin the task and he lifted the axe saying: “Lord! we only mean well.” He then started to demolish one corner of the House. The people watched him awaiting some misfortune to happen to him. They had all agreed that if anything happened to him they would cease the demolition and would repair the damage as if nothing had happened. However, they all agreed that if nothing happened it would mean that Allah was pleased with the act. As nothing happened, al-Walid and the rest of the Quraysh continued demolishing the House until they reached Abraham’s foundation. The foundation was of green stones like intertwined arrowheads.
Muhammad Ibn Ishaq narrated from a hadith narrator that a man of Quraysh who participated in the demolition inserted a lever between two stones because he wanted to lift one of them. When the stone moved, the whole of Makkah shook. The people then decided not to dig further than where the foundation was
Everyone participated in carrying the stones and in constructing the House, until they came to the Black Stone. They argued and debated as to which tribe was to have the honour of lifting it and putting it in its place. Fighting was prevented by Abu Umayyah Ibn al-Mughirah al-Makhzumi who said:”O’ People of Quraysh! Let the first man to enter the gate of the mosque be your judge.” They agreed. The first to enter was Muhammad (saws). They said: “Here comes the trustworthy one (Al-Amin in Arabic) whom we take as our judge.” They consulted Muhammad (saws), and he said: “Bring me a cloak.” When they brought him the cloak he placed the Black Stone on it and said: “Let the elders of each tribe hold on to one edge of the cloak and raise it (to the position of the stone).” They did so and the Prophet (saws) placed the stone in its place.
The Ka’bah remained as such until it burnt down at the beginning of ‘Abdullah Ibn az-Zubayr’s reign in the year 60 AH, and at the end of Yazid Ibn Mu’awiya’s rule, when Ibn Az-Zubayr was besieged and he demolished the Ka’bah and rebuilt it on top of Abraham’s foundations. He realigned its northern wall by five arm lengths and added an eastern and a western entrance at floor level. He did this because he had heard this from his aunt ‘Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), Mother of the Believers, who quoted the Prophet (saws). The Ka’bah remained in this state until he was killed by al-Hajjaj who restored it to its previous form on the orders of ‘Abd al-Malik Ibn Marwan. This was narrated by Muslim in his Sahih on the authority of ‘Ata.
The Sunnah supported the act of ‘Abdullah Ibn Az-Zubayr because that was what the Prophet (saws) had wanted (as is apparent form the Hadith of ‘Aisha). This Sunnah was unknown to ‘Abdul Malik Ibn Marwan, and when he realisd that ‘Aisha quoted the Prophet (saws) regarding this story, he wished he had not issued such an order.
Muslim narrated in his Sahih from Abu Qaza’ah that when ‘Abdul Malik Ibn Marwan was circumambulating the House, he cursed Ibn Az-Zubayr thinking that he had lied about what ‘Aisha had said. He said that he heard her saying that the Prophet (saws) had told her: “O’ ‘Aisha! Were it not for the fact that your people have recently accepted Islam (still fresh from unbelief), I would have demolished the Ka’bah and included in it a portion of al-Hijr. Your people have curtailed its building.”1 Al-Harith Ibn ‘Abdullah Ibn Abu Rabi’a said: “O Leader of the Believers (that is ‘Aisha) say this” Ibn Marwan said that if he had heard this Hadith before he ordered the demolition of the House, he would have left it as Ibn Az-Zubayr had built it. This Hadith is valid because it was narrated in several versions, all of which are authentic. This confirmed that what Ibn Az-Zubayr did was right. Left untouched it would have been a good structure. Malik Ibn Anas prohibited ar-Rashid, or maybe ar-Rashid’s father al-Mahdi, from the demolition of the House so as to return it to Abraham’s foundations and to prevent this becoming a habit of later leaders, to demolish it whenever they wanted.
The Ka’bah will retain its present structure until it is destroyed by “Dhus-Suwayqatayn” from Ethiopia as mentioned in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (ra) who said the Prophet (saws) said: “The Ka’bah will be destroyed by Dhus-Suawayqatayn (that is literally, a man with two lean legs”.2 There is also another narration on the authority of ‘Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr Ibn al-‘As (ra) who said: “I heard the Prophet (saws) : ‘A man from Ethiopia with two lean legs will destroy the Ka’bah, take away its treasures and remove its covers. As if I were looking at him, he is a bald man with crooked arms and legs who is attacking the Ka’bah with his iron shovel and pickaxe.”3 this will occur after the appearance of “Ya’juj and Ma’juj” (Gog and Magog) as mentioned in Sahih al-Bukhari quoting Abu Sa’id al-Khudri (ra) that the Prophet (saws) said: “the people will continue performing Hajj and Umrah even after the appearance of Gog and Magog”.4
1 Sahih (al-Bukhari 1/44, 491, 3/197, 4/412; Muslim 4/99-100; at-Tirmidhi 1/66 and Ibn Majah,2955. See al-Albani’s As-Sahihah 1/43). 2 Sahih 3 Sahih (al-Bukhari and Muslim. See al-Mishkat, no. 2721) 4 Sahih
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