Technical note / Defect ('illah): (1) The chain has occurred thus in the handwritten manuscripts, which is an error, because al-Hakim narrates from Muhammad bin Nasr al-Marwazi through his shaykh Abu Yahya Ahmad bin Muhammad al-Samarqandi, as has passed several times in this book.

Grading: (2) Its chain is da'if (weak) because of Zuhayr bin al-Ala'.

Reference / Source: It was narrated by al-Tabarani in "al-Kabir" (22/ 1086), Abu Nu'aym in "Ma'rifat al-Sahabah" (7480), and al-Bayhaqi in "Dala'il al-Nubuwwah" 7/ 288 through several routes from Abu al-Ash'ath Ahmad bin al-Miqdam, with this same chain.

Reference / Source: It was narrated by al-Bayhaqi 7/ 288-289 through the route of Abd al-Wahhab bin Ata, from Sa'id bin Abi Arubah, in a similar way.

Reference / Source: It was narrated by Ibn Asakir in "Tarikh Dimashq" 3/ 163 and al-Diya' al-Maqdisi in "al-Mukhtarah" (7/ 2524) through the route of Umar bin Sahl, who said: Yahya bin Abi Kathir narrated to us, from Qatadah, from Anas (may Allah be pleased with him): "The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) married fifteen (15) women, consummated the marriage with eleven (11) of them, and died leaving nine (9) (behind him)."
Grading: Its chain is hasan.

Reference / Source: It was narrated by Abu Nu'aym in "Ma'rifat al-Sahabah" (7364) and (7431) through the route of Ibn Ishaq, from Hakim bin Hakim, from Muhammad bin Ali bin al-Husayn, from his father (Zayn al-Abidin), who said: "The total number of women the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) married was fifteen; the first was Khadijah bint Khuwaylid of the Quraysh, (then) Sawdah bint Zam'ah of the Quraysh … etc."

Note / Clarification: (3) The author (al-Hakim) mentioned "Abu Ubaydah Ma'mar bin al-Muthanna" here, then he (may Allah have mercy on him) was inattentive and quoted with his chain the words of "Abu Ubayd al-Qasim bin Sallam". Whatever the case, the words of both of them on this matter are alike. Abu Ubaydah Ma'mar bin al-Muthanna said in his book "Tasmiyat Azwaj al-Nabi ﷺ" p. 245: "The total number of women the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) married is eighteen (18): seven of them from the various clans of the Quraysh, one from the allies of the Quraysh, nine (9) from the other Arab tribes, and one from the Children of Israel, of the family of Harun bin Imran; so that makes seventeen (17) from the Arab tribes and one (1) from the Children of Israel, making eighteen women in all."

Details of the narration: In al-Bayhaqi's "al-Dala'il", after the previous narration of Qatadah, it is transmitted from al-Hakim himself: Abu Abdullah al-Hafiz (al-Hakim) said: And Abu Ubaydah Ma'mar bin al-Muthanna said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) married eighteen women, and he added among them Qutaylah bint Qays (the sister of al-Ash'ath bin Qays). Some claimed that he married her two months before his death, and others claimed that he married her during his illness. He said: She never came to him (peace and blessings be upon him), he never saw her, and the marriage was not consummated. Others claimed that he left instructions that Qutaylah be given a choice: if she wished, the veil (hijab) would be imposed on her and she would be forbidden to the believers (i.e. become one of the Mothers of the Believers), and if she wished, she could marry whomever she wished. She chose marriage, and Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl married her in Hadramawt. This reached Abu Bakr, and he said: I was about to burn (their house) upon the two of them. Then Umar bin al-Khattab said: She is not one of the Mothers of the Believers; the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) neither consummated the marriage with her nor imposed the veil on her. He said: And some claimed that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) left no instruction concerning her, but that she apostatised, so Umar argued before Abu Bakr that because of her apostasy she was not one of the wives of the Prophet. She bore Ikrimah only one child.