{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,4]],"date-time":"2026-04-04T19:17:56Z","timestamp":1775330276044,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"Cambridge University Press (CUP)","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2015,6,29]],"date-time":"2015-06-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1435536000000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/terms"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["J. Mar. Biol. Ass."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2016,5]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Ambergris is a rare substance produced in the intestines of sperm whales. It appears to result from an irritation caused by the beaks of the cephalopods on which they feed. The link between ambergris and whales, if not the mechanism by which ambergris is produced, has been addressed throughout history but, due to contradictory reports and fanciful explanations regarding its origin, only recently has it been widely accepted. Since ancient times ambergris has been used for medicinal purposes and in perfumes, but its supposed exotic properties are an important reason for the European demand for this substance. Accounts about ambergris from places where Europeans sailed since the 15th century are numerous. In the 16th and 17th centuries there were no laws dictating who owned the ambergris found on beaches and many pieces were sold or traded, legally or illegally, from overseas to Europe. However, this product was always obtained in relatively small quantities. More recently, with the advent of industrial whaling dedicated to sperm whaling conducted by several nations in various parts of the world during the 19th and 20th centuries, ambergris acquired an importance of its own and was sold at very high prices. In the Azores, ambergris from hunted sperm whales was documented; the same applies for Madeira and the Portuguese mainland. Being a product typically reported in whaling data and related to the economic exploitation of the sea, it is through the historical sources that its importance is clearly demonstrated.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1017\/s0025315415000910","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2015,6,29]],"date-time":"2015-06-29T08:15:49Z","timestamp":1435565749000},"page":"585-596","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":9,"title":["Ambergris as an overlooked historical marine resource: its biology and role as a global economic commodity"],"prefix":"10.1017","volume":"96","author":[{"given":"Cristina","family":"Brito","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]},{"given":"Vera L.","family":"Jord\u00e3o","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[]},{"given":"Graham J.","family":"Pierce","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[]}],"member":"56","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2015,6,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref8","volume-title":"Annual statistics of Portugal","year":"1899"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref23","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1086\/353040"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref26","volume-title":"Possessing nature: Museums, collecting, and scientific culture in early modern Italy","author":"Findlen","year":"1996"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref14","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2752\/175303711X13045914865303"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref32","volume-title":"Plant Resins: chemistry, evolution, ecology and ethnobotany","author":"Langenheim","year":"2003"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref48","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.3354\/meps242295"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref7","volume-title":"Statistics of the maritime fisheries of the continent and adjacent islands","year":"1897"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref29","volume-title":"Tratado da terra do Brasil; Hist\u00f3ria da Prov\u00edncia Santa Cruz","author":"G\u00e2ndavo","year":"1980"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref38","volume-title":"Sacred gifts, profane pleasures: a history of tobacco and chocolate in the Atlantic world","author":"Norton","year":"2008"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref39","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.7208\/chicago\/9780226620862.001.0001"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref27","first-page":"712","article-title":"Os animais e os seus produtos nos Col\u00f3quios de Garcia de Orta","volume":"11","author":"Frade","year":"1963","journal-title":"Garcia da Orta, Revista da Junta de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o do Ultramar"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref2","volume-title":"Rela\u00e7\u00e3o do novo caminho que fez por terra e mar, vindo da \u00cdndia para Portugal, no anno de 1663, o Padre Manuel Godinho da Companhia de Jesus","year":"1842"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref5","volume-title":"Agriculture and feeding statistics","year":"1965"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref16","volume-title":"Dix si\u00e9cles de p\u00eache \u00e0 la baleine","author":"Cazeils","year":"2000"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref22","first-page":"31","article-title":"A pesca da baleia","volume":"9","author":"Cruz","year":"1945","journal-title":"Boletim da Pesca"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref45","first-page":"6","article-title":"More private gain that public good: whale and ambergris exploitation in 17th century Bermuda","volume":"17","author":"Romero","year":"2006","journal-title":"Bermuda Journal of Archaeology and Maritime History"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"256","DOI":"10.1098\/rstl.1724.0053","article-title":"An essay upon the natural history of whales, with a particular account of the ambergris found in the sperma ceti whale","volume":"33","author":"Dudley","year":"1724","journal-title":"Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref13","volume-title":"Di\u00e1logos das Grandezas do Brasil","author":"Brand\u00e3o","year":"1943"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref20","volume-title":"Duas descri\u00e7\u00f5es seiscentistas da Guin\u00e9","author":"Coelho","year":"1990"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref19","volume-title":"Exoticorum libri decem. quibus animalium, plantarum, aromatum\u2026: Item Petri Belloni Observationes","author":"Clusius","year":"1605"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref31","volume-title":"De herbis et plantis. De animalibus and reptilibus. De fluvibus et volatilibus. De avibus et volatibus. De piscibus et natatilibus. De lapidibus et in terra veris nascen tibus \u2026 Tabula Medicinalis cum Direct\u00f3rio Generali per Omnes Tractatus","year":"1497"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.5597\/lajam00087"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref36","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0025315400048426"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref34","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0378-8741(02)00377-X"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref46","volume-title":"Hist\u00f3ria do Brasil","author":"Salvador","year":"1889"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref41","first-page":"197","article-title":"A fauna dos Lus\u00edadas","volume":"27","author":"Os\u00f3rio","year":"1906","journal-title":"Jornal Sciencias Mathematicas Physicas e Naturaes, Academia das Sciencias"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref4","volume-title":"Circular do Gr\u00e9mio dos Armadores da Pesca da Baleia","year":"1961"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref40","volume-title":"Col\u00f3quios dos Simples e Drogas da \u00cdndia","author":"Orta","year":"1987"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref35","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1186\/1746-4269-2-11"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref11","first-page":"5","article-title":"O com\u00e9rcio de \u00e2mbar cinzento asi\u00e1tico na \u00e9poca moderna, s\u00e9culos XV a XVIII","volume":"8","author":"Borschberg","year":"2001","journal-title":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o Oriente"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref33","volume-title":"Hist\u00f3ria da Companhia de Jesus no Brasil","author":"Leite","year":"1938"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref28","volume-title":"Saudades da Terra","author":"Frutuoso","year":"2005"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref44","volume-title":"Of whales and men","author":"Robertson","year":"1956"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref6","volume-title":"Fishing statistics","year":"1969"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/00033790802388428"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref30","volume-title":"Los balleneros en Galicia (siglos XIII al XX)","author":"Hansen","year":"2010"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref15","volume-title":"Tratados da terra e gente do Brasil","author":"Cardim","year":"1980"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref47","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0025315402005787"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref37","volume-title":"La historia medicinal de las cosas que se traen de nuestras \u00cdndias Occidentales","author":"Monardes","year":"1989"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"43","DOI":"10.1098\/rstl.1791.0004","article-title":"On the production of ambergris. A communication from the committee of council appointed for the consideration of all matters relating to trade and foreign plantations; With a prefatory letter from William Fawkener","volume":"81","author":"Fawkener","year":"1791","journal-title":"Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref9","unstructured":"ANTT (1574) Invent\u00e1rio e conta que deu Diogo da Rocha de S\u00e1, do dinheiro, \u00e2mbar, prata e maius fazenda que tinha recebido de Mem de S\u00e1\u2019, Cart\u00f3rio dos Jesu\u00edtas, M\u00e7 6, N\u00b0 5."},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref1","volume-title":"Baleias, Focas e Peixes-Bois na Hist\u00f3ria Natural Portuguesa","author":"Alma\u00e7a","year":"1998"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref12","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1098\/rstl.1724.0046"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref43","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/B978-0-12-373553-9.00008-0"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref3","volume-title":"Industrial Statistics","year":"1943"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref17","first-page":"l","article-title":"Cephalopoda in the diet of sperm whales of the southern hemisphere and their bearing on sperm whale biology","volume":"37","author":"Clarke","year":"1980","journal-title":"Discovery Reports"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref10","volume-title":"Dicion\u00e1rio de Cam\u00f5es","author":"Alves","year":"1994"},{"key":"S0025315415000910_ref42","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/0268117X.2013.792158"}],"container-title":["Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/services\/aop-cambridge-core\/content\/view\/S0025315415000910","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,21]],"date-time":"2025-06-21T01:58:02Z","timestamp":1750471082000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.cambridge.org\/core\/product\/identifier\/S0025315415000910\/type\/journal_article"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2015,6,29]]},"references-count":48,"journal-issue":{"issue":"3","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2016,5]]}},"alternative-id":["S0025315415000910"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1017\/s0025315415000910","relation":{},"ISSN":["0025-3154","1469-7769"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0025-3154","type":"print"},{"value":"1469-7769","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2015,6,29]]}}}