Bayhaqi 14351 — It is recommended to be moderate in the dowry

Mujahid narrates from Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him): Fatimah (may Allah be pleased with her), the daughter of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), was being proposed to, and a slave woman of mine said to me: Do you know that a proposal has been made for Fatimah? I said "Yes" or "No." She said: You should propose too. He said: I said: What do I have to give in order to marry? But she kept encouraging me until I went to him (peace and blessings be upon him). I held him (peace and blessings be upon him) in very great reverence, so when I sat before him I could not speak. He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Do you need something?" I remained silent, until he said this three times. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Perhaps you have come to propose to Fatimah?" I said: Yes, O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "What do you have with which you can make her lawful for yourself?" He said: I said: Nothing, O Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him)! He (peace and blessings be upon him) asked: "Where is the coat of mail I gave you as a weapon?" Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: That coat of mail is worth only four hundred dirhams. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Go, I have married you to her; but give that coat of mail to her and make her lawful for yourself."
(b) It is likewise 400 dirhams in my book, and in the narration of Ibn Ishaq it is 4 dirhams.