Spermaceti - Spermaceti Processing

Spermaceti Processing

Spermaceti was gathered during whaling and was considered a valuable resource by whalers due to the high price that could be fetched for it. The sperm whale's head was either brought on deck or lashed to the side of the ship where the whalemen would cut a hole in the case. The spermaceti could then be drawn out by bucket or a whaleman would enter the hole and manually remove the fluid. Accounts suggest that this procedure changed little from the earliest days of sperm whaling to the advent of modern technology in the 20th century. Once gathered the spermaceti would be placed in barrels for the voyage home. A large whale could have as much as 500 gallons.