Did you know?
A robber who tasted salt went on to found a dynasty
A story retold in Trumbull's 1899 book says Ya'qub, a coppersmith's son turned robber, broke into a governor's treasury, licked what he took for a jewel, found it was rock salt, and left the loot rather than betray a host whose salt he had eaten. The real Ya'qub ibn al-Layth founded the Saffarid dynasty and died in 879.
Read the full story: Eating Someone's Salt
More salt facts
Cite this page
For school projects and reports. Teachers often prefer the original sources too: see the list below.
The Salt Almanac. (2026, November 8). A robber who tasted salt went on to found a dynasty. https://saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/robber-who-tasted-salt
“A robber who tasted salt went on to found a dynasty.” The Salt Almanac, 8 Nov. 2026, saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/robber-who-tasted-salt. Accessed [today's date].
“A robber who tasted salt went on to found a dynasty.” The Salt Almanac. Last modified November 8, 2026. https://saltalmanac.com/did-you-know/robber-who-tasted-salt.
Original sources
- Trumbull, H.C. The Covenant of Salt. 1899. https://archive.org/details/covenantofsaltas00trum
- Wikipedia. Ya'qub ibn al-Layth al-Saffar. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ya%27qub_ibn_al-Layth_al-Saffar