What is the ruling regarding clothing worn by a slave at the time of sale?
Chapter on Selling the Musarrah (Animal with milk retained in udder)
Al-Mughni
Book of Sales
Primary text
Clothing that the slave typically wore for service and utilitarian purposes (bathdhal) at the seller's premises is included in the sale. Clothing worn for adornment or worn over the utilitarian clothing is considered the seller's property and does not transfer to the buyer unless specifically stipulated by the purchaser. The utilitarian clothing enters the sale because it is customary to sell them together, and the slave has a necessity and need for them, making them akin to keys for a house. Adornment clothing is considered an addition beyond custom and not a necessity for the slave, as the master dresses the slave in them for the master's own benefit, not the slave's.
Supporting text
Ibn Umar, Hasan, and Nakh'i held that if a woman (walidah) is sold adorned with clothing, the buyer acquires the clothing unless the seller stipulates retention. Their evidence is a report narrated by Ibn Umar. They argue that the clothing was not covered by the verbal terms of the sale, nor is it customary to sell them, thus resembling the seller's other property. Furthermore, since the clothing is ornamentation for the item sold, it resembles decorating a house with a rug or curtain.