Please contact me for retail and wholesaleWhat is ambergris?Ambergris (Ambre Grigia) - This is a solid substance that is formed in the digestive tract of sperm whales, as a result of the digestion of ingested mollusks and other small creatures. The consistency is similar to wax. Especially appreciated in the aromatic industry, as it serves to fix and enhance very delicate and / or fleeting aromas. The reference book on perfumery "Poucher's Perfumery, Cosmetics and Soaps" (1923) classifies ambergris into several qualities and types, specifying that it lends a certain velvety to fine "high class" perfumes. It is a very good fixative for floral scents and can last several months on a test strip.
In appearance, it can be different, both white, gray, black, and yellow transparent, like amber. Depending on the stage of fermentation and the time spent in the ocean under the sun. There are two main features by which ambergris can be identified: the first is a musky, slightly animal smell with slight hints of resin or rosin; and second, it must melt at 62°C. At 100°C, it evaporates to form steam. If yellow amber does not have a musky smell that does not disappear for a long time, then most likely it is resin or rosin. Black and white can even give off the smell of urea, which means they are still fresh and have a lot of whale digestive enzyme.
The history of ambergris
Ambergris has been a unique phenomenon for thousands of years. Fossils of this substance date back 1.75 million years, and it is likely that humans have been using it for over 1,000 years. For a long time its origin was considered mysterious. In China, believed to be the saliva of a dragon, the Persian physician Avicenna believed that this substance erupted from fountains at the bottom of the ocean. In the 13th century, during the time of Marco Polo, it was determined that ambergris is found in the belly of whales. After that, unfortunately, for a couple of centuries, for the sake of mining and selling this substance, the population of blue, humpback whales and sperm whales was almost completely destroyed. A whole horde of whales was caught by poaching, which Marco Polo himself wrote about the rivers of ambergris flowing along the shores of the Arabian Islands.
Now these creatures are under the protection of WWF (World Wildlife Fund) and other funds, therefore, in the United States of America and Australia, ambergris is prohibited for import / export and storage, in accordance with environmental protection laws. In Australia it is the "Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act of 1999", in the US it is the "Endangered Species Act of 1973".
Safe way to get it
On islands in the ocean and on the shores of large waters, there are places where whales very often swim nearby, migrating during the mating season. It is in such places that you can most often find ambergris thrown ashore by the waves, because at this moment the whales are more active than usual, they spit out undigested mollusk shells and corals containing this very enzyme. As a result of swimming under the sun in the ocean, they harden and are washed ashore. Sometimes people find pieces up to 340 kg in weight, such as in 1942 on the island of Madeira, belonging to Portugal in the Atlantic Ocean.