23 September 2008

This wasn't used to poison Charles II


Charles II of England died suddenly in 1685. One theory is that poison was placed in his favorite breakfast of eggs and ambergris (the ambergris then covering the smell of the poison).

The mass pictured above would not likely be useful in that regard. It was found washed up on the shore near Wellington, NZ, and locals who assumed it was valuable ambergris were then seen chopping pieces off of it to take home and sell on the internet.

However the lump was subsequently noted to be disgustingly foul-smelling and likely either cheese or congealed lard.

Doubt about the mass being ambergris should have been raised by the fact that before being hacked to pieces it was cylindrical and the size of a 44-gallon drum...

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