Spermaceti
Sperma ceti, “whale’s seed”
- Known today as
- A white wax from the head of the sperm whale.
- Kind
- Animal
- Constituents
- cetyl palmitate, triglycerides
Revised October 3, 2026: Checked against its sources, each read in full, in part, or in its abstract. Version 1, first published September 30, 2026.
Spermaceti: what was it used for?
Resolving and softening: in pomatums to smooth the skin, in ointments for hardness of the breasts, and given inwardly against sharp humours in the breast or belly; later a base for cerates and ointments.
Spermaceti: what does modern science say?
Replaced by jojoba wax from the 1970s; the sperm whale is protected.
Pharmacognosy & Toxicology
- Constituents
- cetyl palmitate ChEMBLthe chief wax ester
- triglycerides
- Mechanism
- The wax from the sperm whale’s head, which the whale may use to control its buoyancy, to add resonance to its echolocation clicks, or both: a white, tasteless, odourless wax melting at about 50 °C, used as an excipient in cerates and ointments. Jojoba esters, chemically and physically very like it, took its place, and jojoba became a common ingredient of cold cream from the 1970s.
- Toxic dose
- A wax devoid of taste or smell.
- Standing
- Gone with the protection of the sperm whale under the International Whaling Commission moratorium; cetyl palmitate, its chief ester, is used in cosmetics as a thickener and emulsifier.
- Clarke, M. R. (1978). “Buoyancy control as a function of the spermaceti organ in the sperm whale.” Journal of the Marine Biological Association 58. Abstract read · the text read
The abstract of each source, beneath its citation. For Club members. About the Club or sign in.
Constituent names open the compound’s record at PubChem, and “ChEMBL” beside a name opens its record at ChEMBL, the European Bioinformatics Institute’s database of bioactive molecules. Where a mechanism line was checked against ChEMBL (ChEMBL 37, read 1 October 2026), the check is shown with the measured value and its source paper, or says plainly that nothing has been measured. Doses are as the references give them, for description only; this is not medical advice. Each source carries the result of its check against Crossref, PubMed, or the authority’s page: see Verification.
Spermaceti: what lore surrounds it?
The name records the old belief that it was the whale’s seed. A pure spermaceti candle of a sixth of a pound, burning 120 grains an hour, was made the standard of “candlepower” by the Metropolitan Gas Act of 1860.
In Their Own Words
The 1911 Britannica says spermaceti was used for standard candles, in dressing fabrics, and in medicine and surgery, especially in cerates, ointments and cosmetics.
“The substance is used in making candles of standard photometric value, in the dressing of fabrics, and in medicine and surgery, especially in cerates, bougies, ointments, and in cosmetic preparations.”
Encyclopædia Britannica, eleventh edition: Spermaceti, “Spermaceti”, vol. 25. The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, as transcribed on Wikisource. The text, read in full
Each passage is quoted from the text named, which the press fetched and read, and was checked word for word against a fresh copy of it; the link opens that copy. Passages are given as printed, without the editors’ footnote numbers, and with words broken across lines joined.
Sources
- Pomet, P. (1694). Histoire générale des drogues (English, A Compleat History of Druggs, 1712). Read in part · the text read
- Melville, H. (1851). Moby-Dick, “The Sperm Whale’s Head.” Read in part · the text read
- Wikipedia, “Spermaceti.” Read in full · the text read
- Wikipedia, “Candlepower.” Read in full · the text read
- Wikipedia, “Sperm whale.” Read in full · the text read
- Wikipedia, “Cetyl palmitate.” Read in full · the text read
- Wikipedia, “Cold cream.” Read in full · the text read
Verification
- Checked
- October 1, 2026, and October 3, 2026
- Passes
- Every sentence read against its sources, in the fifty-entry sample
- The Standing line checked against the authority it names (EMA, WHO, FDA, CITES, Commission E)
- Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database
- Every source read, in full, in part, or in its abstract, and every sentence checked against what was read (October 3, 2026)
- Sources
- 8 cited: 5 read in full, 2 read in part, 1 abstract read. 1 with the abstract on file.
- Corrections
- None were needed.
What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.
Cite This Entry
Version 1 · first published September 30, 2026 · last revised October 3, 2026
- Chicago
“Spermaceti.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified October 3, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spermaceti.
- MLA
“Spermaceti.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 3 Oct. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spermaceti. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.
- APA
Spermaceti. (2026, October 3). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spermaceti
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See Also
Sharing triglycerides
Drawing on the same sources: Pomet, Melville, Wikipedia, Clarke
Turmeric · Scammony · Woodlouse · Ambergris · Toad · Snail · Toadflax · the bibliography →
Nearby in the alphabet
Spikenard (a Himalayan valerian) · Speedwell (Veronica chamaedrys and its relatives) · Spirit of wine (Distilled alcohol) · Species Pleris Archonticon · Squill · Southernwood (“lad’s love) · St. Agatha’s bread (the feast of St) · Sorrel, syrup of
Historical description, not medical advice.