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Whale vomit found on Anglesey sells for £11,000 at auction


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The ambergris, discovered by a dog walker, went for £4,000 more than estimated

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The whale vomit 'ambergris' found on an Anglesey beach has sold for £11,000

A highly-prized piece of whale vomit or ambergris sold for £11,000 at auction today - some £4,000 above the asking price.

A dog walker found the yellow and black object on an Anglesey beach and took it to a Macclesfield auctioneers.

Today, it went under the hammer and was bought by an anonymous phone bidder.

Spokesman Oliver Hancock, at Cheshire auction house Adam Partridge, said: “It was pretty busy with about 50 people and two TV crews in the room.

“A lot of people were bidding and a lot of people wanted to see it sell.”

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A dog walker found whale vomit - or ambergris- on a beach in Anglesey

Mr Hancock said in the end it was a two-way fight between a phone bidder and an internet bidder.

The phone bidder - a private collector from the UK - won, buying it for £11,000.

The ambergris’s unnamed finder is reluctant to reveal exactly which beach on Anglesey he found it.

The material is used in the perfume industry, making it very valuable, which is why auctioneer Chris Surfleet slapped an estimate of £5,000-£7,000 on the lump weighing just over a kilogram and measuring little more than eight inches long.

Mr Hancock, who said it was the first time his firm has sold ambergris, said: “You get more modern ones that are not as rocky. This one has been in the sea a long time, about 50 years.”


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Adam Partridge with the whale vomit that was up for auction

Ambergris is formed in a sperm whale’s digestive system and is passed either as vomit or as part of the faeces. Scientists believe it is used to coat irritating objects in the whale’s intestines.

It is used to enhance the scent or prolong the duration with which a fragrance lasts.

Previously, a 6lb lump of ambergris found on a Lancashire beach sold for £100,000 to a buyer from the perfume industry.

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I just placed my personal upchuck from last night on eBay. Reserve is $1.31.

Any takers?

apparently the good stuff must be rock like in appearance and feel...yours may not even make the minimum reserve bid :lol:

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Ballistic Gelatin

I just placed my personal upchuck from last night on eBay. Reserve is $1.31.

Any takers?

apparently the good stuff must be rock like in appearance and feel...yours may not even make the minimum reserve bid :lol:

Well, it certainly FELT like rocks when it came up.... :blink:

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I just placed my personal upchuck from last night on eBay. Reserve is $1.31.

Any takers?

apparently the good stuff must be rock like in appearance and feel...yours may not even make the minimum reserve bid :lol:

Well, it certainly FELT like rocks when it came up.... :blink:

hey all you gotta do now is live in the ocean and WE could be rich :rolleyes: the split will be 40-60

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