Chunk of Whale Vomit Worth $60,000+

From: Diane S.

Sent: September 2, 2012

To: undisclosed recipients

Subject: Fw: Chunk of Whale Vomit Worth $60,000+

For some reason a friend of mine from the UK thought I would be interested in this story. Yes, I get crazy email too. Diane
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An eight-year-old boy in the UK was taking a stroll along the beach at Hengistbury Head. He discovered what he thought was a large rock laying on the beach and pick it up to carry home. The boy and his parents couldn’t identify the odd rock and later found out it wasn’t a rock at all.

The waxy feeling, sweet smelling rock turned out to be a chunk of ambergris – also known as whale vomit. Yes, seriously. That yellow rock the boy is holding in the picture is whale puke. That may be the most disgusting thing I’ve seen all day. As it turns out whale vomit is rare and highly sought after in the perfume industry.

The material helps the scent of her perfume last longer and is worth as much as £6,300 (~$10,000 USD) per pound. The chunk the boy has is estimated to be worth £40,000 (~$63,000 USD). The lad hopes to sell the chunk of vomit and use the money for something along the lines of an animal shelter.
(Source)