KEY POINTS:
The mystery object washed up on Wellington's south coast may not be cheese but valuable ambergris, the fancy term for whale vomit.
Wellington City Council spokesman Richard MacLean said it had been inundated with calls from people convinced that the large, grey, greasy block found at Breaker Bay is the much sought after and valuable ambergris which is most commonly used in the manufacture of perfume.
Ambergris is an excretion whales produce in response to irritation caused by squid, which forms a large part of their diet. It washes up on beaches and is considered valuable because of its rarity and the uncertainty of supply.
Mr MacLean said the council was not convinced about the theory but had not yet ruled it out. The object was at first considered to be a huge piece of cheese.
"So many people have rung in saying `it's worth half a million dollars', we feel honour-bound to actually go out and stake our claim on it."
He believed it was far more likely that the block was tallow or some sort of packing material from a ship.
The grey lump, roughly the size of a 44-gallon drum and weighing anything up to 500kg would be a "real pain" to shift, Mr MacLean said.
City council officials are planning to meet staff from the Wellington Regional Council, which has responsibility for the region's beaches, this morning to figure out the next move.
In the meantime, the block was not melting or deteriorating other than sustaining a little damage from curious seagulls.
- NZPA
