Ambergris is sperm whale vomit used in perfumes. It is found washed up on beaches and can be quite a windfall as it can be worth more than 10$/gram. Here is a good story about a woman with a hunk of the smelly vomit. There is also a story of a couple from Australia that found a large hunk worth $500 000 but they are having legal trouble selling it. I also found a great collection of anecdotes from a museum curator about ambergris. It has been worth a lot of money since "time immemorial" and perhaps justifiably so. It so happens that it causes increased sexual behavior in male rats. Does it work it humans? Just thinking about the scent hunk of vomit, that originated in the small intestine of a sperm whale, and subsequently matured floating in the sea for perhaps years doesn't make me personally excited. Perhaps I'm emetophobic.
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2 comments:
Where the hell to you find all those stories....?
mmm almost as nice as perfume with civet oil, obtained from the anal glands of civets (cat-like animals) :D
and civetol (i think, or it could be civetane or civetone), is present in the digestive system, which basically makes poo smell like shit (and a similar compound in your mouth gives you bad breath)
hey, it looks like i DID remember something from orgo :O
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