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The waxy lumps are also called ‘floating gold’, because they are used as a raw material for very expensive perfumes. Images show that the fisherman is holding a lighter near the find, after which it starts to melt.
The chunk weighs more than 100 kilos and caught Suwannasang’s attention while he was working on the beach. He soon discovered that it was not an ‘ordinary’ piece of stone. According to Asian media, the value of the find – depending on the quality of the ambergris – can amount to as much as 2.5 million euros. The fisherman already has a preliminary agreement with a trader and is now eagerly awaiting an expert judgment on the quality.
Fearing a possible theft of the ambergris, Suwannasang went to the police to secure the find.
Sweet and salty
The stuff is said to have a characteristic sweet and salty smell. The fragrance is also mimicked with various synthetic fabrics.
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About one in a hundred sperm whales produce the precious ambergris.
Ⓒ AFP
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Ambergrijs is, according to the Dutch nature museum Ecomare, ‘a fatty substance that is deposited in the intestines of sperm whales against sharp objects such as squid beaks’. It is said to be a substance from the sperm whale. Thanks to ambergris, the scent of expensive perfumes lingers for a long time. The rare substance is not often found and is therefore very expensive. Only one in a hundred sperm whales would develop the accumulation. The animals could also vomit the ambergris.
83 kilos of ambergris were found in a dead sperm whale that washed up on Texel in 2013. At the time, Ecomare sold the find to the perfume industry for a considerable amount. The proceeds benefited Ecomare’s objective.
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