'Gold pound' dowry for Saudi bride

A Saudi man who married his cousin got the first pleasant shock of his married life when the bride’s father demanded a dowry of only one gold pound.

Ismail bin Ibrahim Al Thaqfi had expected the bride’s father, who is also his uncle, to demand a large dowry in line with soaring wedding expenses in the kingdom and other Gulf countries.

“When the bride’s father was asked by the groom’s family about the dowry for his daughter, he surprised them and the guests when he said he wanted only one gold pound,” the Arabic language daily Sabq said in a report from the western town of Taif.

It said the bride’s father also stipulated that his son-in-law must let his wife go on pilgrimage “when he is financially able.”

Dowries, money paid by the groom to his bride in line with Islamic law, have soared since the discovery of oil turned the previously impoverished desert region into one of the richest places in the world. In some cases, dowries and wedding costs exceeded $1 million.



 

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