Why ambergris are more expensive than gold?

Many people are willing to spend thousands of dollars to buy stinking waste from vomit fish. Experts say that ambergris is actually more precious than gold.

Last week, a British couple found 1.57kg worth of more than US $ 70,000 on long grass at Middleton Sands Beach, near Morecambe Bay. Compared to the current price of gold at 39,648 USD / kg, each kilogram of ambergris has a higher price (44,586 USD / kg).

According to Tech Times, ambergris, fat secreted from sperm whale intestines harden over time and are extremely rare. This is a valuable material used as medicine and perfume.

Ambergris is picked up by the British couple on the beach on April 12.(Photo: Mirror).

When oxidation causes water and air to evaporate from the excreted mass, ambergris produces a similar smell to tobacco or coating outside the tree. The duration of oxidation determines the quality and value of ambergris. The collector of famous French ambergris Bernard Perrin likens it to a good wine, making it more and more long-lasting.

According to historical records, the Middle Eastern people spread longan into powder and drink to strengthen, enhance the strength, cure the brain and heart as well as add flavor to food and drinking water.

A document from the Middle Ages affirmed that this material could help treat colds, headaches and epilepsy.The vomit of sperm whales is so precious that it urges the Portuguese to occupy the Maldives archipelago in the 16th century in order to access the abundant ambergris.

Ambrein , a chemical component of ambergris, is used in the perfume industry to stimulate the sense of smell and prolong the fragrance. This is also the ingredient for making famous Chanel No. 5 perfume.

The taste of George Preti at the Monell Chemistry Sensory Center, USA, explains that ambergris molecules are similar to perfume molecules, which are attracted to fat, but they are heavier and larger.

"Smell molecules have a high degree of adhesion to other fat-loving molecules, so they are attached to ambergris molecules and do not enter the evaporation phase at the same time , " Preti said.

Experts have yet to explain why ambergris is more common in the southern hemisphere and why only male sperms produce this material.What makes ambergris become more valuable and scarce is that the number of sperm whales falls sharply , currently only about 350,000 compared to 1.1 million before being caught.