A man has claimed to have found a rare natural substance worth £15,000 on a Norfolk beach - a material often referred to as "floating gold".

Gary Blagden believes he stumbled upon ambergris - a substance also known as sperm whale vomit - while at Bacton beach. 

The substance can be sold for a substantial amount of money as it is used in designer perfumes due to its musky smell, with even a small amount worth thousands of pounds.

Eastern Daily Press: Gary Blagden believes he has stumbled across ambergris on Bacton beachGary Blagden believes he has stumbled across ambergris on Bacton beach (Image: Gary Blagden)

It is a "waxy" consistency and is washed up on beaches after floating around the sea for potentially years.

The indigestible elements of prey, such as the beaks and pens, are vomited out by whales before digestion, but on rare occasions these parts move into the intestines and bind together.

READ MORE: Family finds 'biggest piece of amber in years' on north Norfolk coast

Mr Blagden believes he found 1.3kg of the substance at the beach on Saturday morning.

The 62-year-old said: "It's really exciting, everyone who has seen it thinks it is 100pc ambergris, but I need to send it for tests.

Eastern Daily Press: Gary BlagdenGary Blagden (Image: Gary Blagden)

"I just hope it's worth a lot of money."

But a spokesman from Ambergris.FR believes it is more likely to be a different kind of substance. 

He said: "We are sorry to inform you that it is not ambergris. We are only experts in ambergris, not in various materials found in the sea, so we cannot tell you exactly what it is."