The view preferred by scholars concerning the whereabouts of the head of al-Husayn ibn Alī—may Allah be pleased with them both—is that recorded by al-Zubayr ibn Bakkār in his book, “The Genealogies of Quraysh.” Al-Zubayr ibn Bakkār was among the most knowledgeable and reliable authorities on such matters. He stated that the head was taken to the Prophet’s city, Medina, and buried there. This is fitting, for his brother al-Hasan, his father’s uncle al-Abbās, his son Alī, and others like them are buried there.

Abū al-Khattāb ibn Dihyah—who was known as “the man of two lineages, tracing his descent to Dihyah and al-Husayn”—said in his book, “Well-Known Knowledge on the Merits of Days and Months,” after citing al-Zubayr ibn Bakkār’s report from Muhammad ibn al-Hasan:

“He arrived with al-Husayn’s head while the Umayyads were gathered with Amr ibn Saīd. They heard cries and asked, ‘What is this?’ They were told, ‘The women of Banū Hāshim are weeping upon seeing the head of al-Husayn ibn Alī.’” He related: “He brought the head of al-Husayn ibn Alī and took it in to Amr, who said, ‘By Allah, I wish the Commander of the Faithful had not sent it to me.’”

Ibn Dihyah said: “This report indicates that the head was taken to Medina; no other account of its whereabouts has been established as authentic. Al-Zubayr is the foremost authority on genealogy and the most distinguished scholar in this field.”

He continued: “As for the claim that it was in a shrine in Ascalon, this is false and would not be accepted by anyone possessing even the slightest measure of reason and discernment. Given the killing, hostility, and rancour displayed by the Umayyads, it is inconceivable that they would build a shrine over the head for people to visit.

“So much for that. As for what ‘Banū Ubayd’ fabricated during their decline, the onset of their ruin, and their hastened destruction, in the days of the man styled ‘al-Qāsim, Īsā ibn al-Zāfir,’ who was invested with the caliphate