and iron, copper, lead, and the like, they are included in the sale and are owned through ownership of the land in which they are located; for they are part of its constituents, and are thus like its soil and its stones. However, a gold mine may not be sold for gold, nor a silver mine for silver; but it is permissible to sell them for a different species. If a mine appears in the land of which the seller was unaware, he has the option [to rescind], because it is an increase he was not aware of, and it is similar to if he sold someone a garment as being ten, and it turned out to be eleven. This is if he owned the land through reclamation (ihya') or an iqta' (grant). It has been reported that the children of Bilal ibn al-Harith sold land to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, and a mine was discovered in it. They said: "We only sold the land, we did not sell the mine." They brought to Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz the document containing the Prophet's—peace and blessings of Allah be upon him—grant (qati'ah) to their father, so Umar took it, kissed it, and returned the mine to them. If the seller owned the land through purchase, it is possible that he has no option, because the right belongs to someone else, who is the first owner. It is also possible that he has the option, just as if one bought a defective item and then sold it without knowing of its defect, for he is entitled to have it returned to him, even if he sold it just as he had bought it. Abu Talib has reported from Ahmad that if a mine appears on one's property, one owns it. The outward implication of this is that he did not assign it to the seller, nor did he grant him an option, because it is one of the constituents of the land, and it is similar to if stones of great value were discovered in it.
Section: If there is a well or a spring developed in the land, the well itself and the land of the spring are owned by the owner of the land, but the water that is in it is not owned, because it flows from underneath the land into his property, and is thus similar to water flowing in a river into his property. This is one of the two views held by the companions of al-Shafi'i. The other view is that it enters into the ownership, because it is the yield of the property. It has been reported from Ahmad what indicates that it is owned; for he said regarding a man who owns land and another who owns water: "The owner of the land and the owner of the water share the crop, and it is between them?" He replied: "There is no harm in that." Abu Bakr chose this view. This indicates that the water is owned by its owner. In the same category as water are minerals that flow within properties, such as asphalt, petroleum, mummy [bitumen], and salt.
(24) See what has preceded in: 4/240, 241, and it preceded in its wording in: 4/245, 246. (25) Omitted from: The original.