Found a block of 'floating gold' worth nearly 13 billion VND in the belly of a sperm whale

When the carcass of a sperm whale washed ashore on a beach on the Spanish island of La Palma recently, no one imagined the treasure that lay inside its gut.

Rough seas and rising tides made the autopsy difficult, but Antonio Fernandez Rodriguez, head of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Food Security at the University of Las Palmas, was determined to find out why the whale died.

Tìm thấy khối 'vàng nổi' gần 13 tỉ đồng trong bụng cá nhà táng - Ảnh 1. — Researchers examine the sperm whale carcass that washed ashore on the coast of La Palma.

Suspecting a digestive problem, Mr. Rodriguez checked the animal's intestines and found something hard stuck to them. "What I pulled out was a stone about 50-60 cm in diameter, weighing 9.5 kg," Mr. Rodriguez said, adding that what he was holding was ambergris, according to The Guardian on July 4th.

Ambergris is a rare and precious substance, often called "floating gold," and has been sought after by perfumers for centuries. Sperm whales typically eat squid and cuttlefish, much of which they cannot digest and regurgitate. However, some remains in the whale's intestines and, over the years, binds together to form ambergris.

Tìm thấy khối 'vàng nổi' gần 13 tỉ đồng trong bụng cá nhà táng - Ảnh 2. — A mass of ambergris found in the intestines of a sperm whale at La Palma.

This substance has a sandalwood-like fragrance and can retain its scent for a long time thanks to ambrein, making it popular with perfumers. Only one in 100 sperm whales produces ambergris. The United States, Australia, and India have banned the trade of ambergris as part of their whaling bans.

This substance is sometimes excreted and floats on the sea, hence it's also called "floating gold." However, sometimes it grows too large and punctures the intestines, killing the whale, as was the case in La Palma. Mr. Rodriguez, who has examined the carcasses of more than 1,000 whales, believes that the infection caused by the ambergris mass killed the whale. The ambergris mass that Mr. Rodriguez found is estimated to be worth 500,000 euros (approximately 12.8 billion VND).

Rodriguez's research institute is seeking a buyer, and the expert hopes the funds raised will be used to help victims of the 2021 volcanic eruption in La Palma, which caused more than 800 million euros in damage and destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses.

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