Umar's Appropriation of the Sawafi

Al-Baladhuri relates that Umar ibn al-Khattab took estates from the Sawad, that is he chose them for the public treasury; these are called al-Sawafi. ¹

The narrator is Abd al-Malik ibn Abi Hurra from his father, whom al-Baladhuri describes as having informed people about the Sawad. He said that Umar took ten estates, and he kept seven of them and three were lost to him. ¹

The items named include the thickets and water-basins, the land of Khosrow, every monastery that increased, the land of those who were killed in the battle and the land of those who fled. ¹

In another report the land of the people of Khosrow's house and every chosen estate he took are added. The report says that his chosen estates reached seven million dirhams. ¹

The report says that when the strife of the skulls took place, the people burned the register, and each group took the land that was next to it. ¹

The date is about 18 AH after the conquest of the Sawad, an estimate from the report rather than a fixed date, and needs an additional source.