380 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1959 
Other supposed medical virtues of ambergris are as varied as they 
are fascinating: A remedy for hydrophobia, epilepsy, typhoid fever, 
nervous diseases, gravel, and for stoppage of the bowels. “It was 
formerly regarded as a cordial and antispasmodic like musk * * aay 
diuretic * * * gets rid of body parasites of tubercular patients and 
dispels ghosts.” It was “able to dispel evil spirits and was used for 
devil possession and for asthma.” 
Nor is this the end of the medical wonders attributed to ambergris. 
It was further said that it “eases the headache, takes away defiuxions 
from the eyes, comforts old and aged people, prevents apoplexy and 
epilepsy, strengthens all parts of the body and causes fruitfulness.” 
Leonard Stoller quotes another ancient writer to the effect that the 
Cantonese made ambergris into pills which were everlasting and could 
be chewed for years without diminishing in size. 
USE AS A FIXATIVE 
Ambergris can be used only in the finest and most expensive per- 
fumes. Its action is asa fixative. Itadds almost nothing to the odor 
of the perfume itself but has remarkable powers of maintaining the 
scent of the odorous constituents of the perfume. Musk ina perfume 
will give it the maximum diffusive power, while ambergris will give 
it the longest duration of evaporation. While perfumes prepared 
without ambergris last for days, those made with it will last for as 
many months, according to one expert. Ambergris imparts a subtle 
velvetiness unobtainable otherwise. 
The starting material for the formation of ambergris is ambrein, 
which is present in some kinds of squid, eaten by sperm whales. Am- 
prein is a white solid, forming slender needlelike crystals which be- 
come highly electrified upon rubbing. In the presence of vanadium 
or copper and upon exposure to sunlight, air, and seawater, it is trans- 
muted into ambergris. 
SYNTHETIC AMBERGRIS 
Swiss and German chemists, after 30 years of research, have suc- 
ceeded in creating ambrein artificially, and it is on the market under 
the trade names of “Ambropur” and “Grisambrol.” The two prin- 
cipal intermediate constituents are gamma-dihydroionone and am- 
breinolide. The former is responsible for the faint characteristic 
odor of ambergris and the latter for its fixative qualities. 
In 1956 the new synthetics sold for about one-ninth the price of 
good-quality natural ambergris, and their price makes them available 
for use incheaper perfumes. In addition, at least one firm is seriously 
investigating the aphrodisiac qualities of the synthesized material for 
its possible use in animal husbandry. This serves to prove how hard 
