Rare 1.9-Carat Brown Diamond Found in an Arkansas State Park by Couple Celebrating 10th Anniversary

An enormous, rare 1.9-carat brown diamond was discovered by a couple in Arkansas who were celebrating their 10th anniversary there.

A multi-state road trip for Jessica and Seth Erickson's tenth wedding anniversary included a stop at the Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas. They are from Chatfield, Minnesota.

Tayler Markham, an interpreter from Arkansas State Parks, stated that on the morning of November 4, the couple spent time carving and sifting through the park's soil when they discovered a gem that was the shade of iced tea.

Rare 1.9-Carat Brown Diamond

A 1.90-carat rare brown diamond was identified by staff at the Diamond Discovery Center located in the park after the couple had brought the gem there.

Approximately 60 miles to the east of the Arkansas-Oklahoma border is the Crater of Diamonds State Park. It is the only open-air diamond mine in the whole world where visitors can go looking for diamonds at their natural source.

Crater of Diamonds State Park

Nicolas Flament, a geologist and geophysicist from Australia's University of Wollongong, said that Lamproite, a volcanic rock that frequently hosts diamonds along with kimberlites, is the source of Diamond State Park. Diamonds and other materials from tens of kilometers below the surface are brought to the surface by these powerful eruptions.

Denis Fougerouse, a structural and economic geologist from Curtin University in Australia, said that given that it contains a volcanic pipe, the state park is conveniently situated in a fascinating geological region.

Fougerouse explained that at Diamond State Park, these "pipes" are 95 million-year-old volcanoes. Diamonds can be found in certain kinds of volcanoes, kimberlite, and lamproite pipes. These volcanoes have their origins in the Earth's mantle, which is also where diamonds can form. Kimberlite and lamproite that contain diamonds are relatively uncommon, and only 60 out of about 7000 commercially viable pipes worldwide have been found.

The Odds of Finding a Diamond

This makes finding diamonds and other gemstones at the 37.5-acre park surprisingly frequent. On average, one or two diamonds are discovered each day, with 581 diamonds already registered in 2022 and over 33,100 discovered since the park opened in 1972, according to the Crater of Diamonds State Park website.

The largest diamond ever discovered in the US, the 40.23-carat Uncle Sam, was discovered in the same park in 1924.

According to a representative of the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment's Geological Survey, the majority are small, measuring less than one carat, making larger diamonds rare to find. The quality and color are also variable and different sizes have been found.

Since the volcanic pipe was placed, the region has experienced erosion, which has scattered the diamonds. The area is periodically plowed to keep the vegetation under control and reveal new ground since it is now a park.

Geology.com reports that there have been several unsuccessful attempts to mine the area commercially.

It is extremely unusual for a couple to find a diamond of this size and color, though.

One in a million stones weigh one carat, and one in every 15 million weighs two carats, according to Flament.

According to Jim Houran, a frequent visitor to the park and a collector of diamonds, less than 3% of the diamonds discovered at the Crater are larger than one carat, making this a very unique and special find.

10th Anniversary Find

A clear 1.9-carat diamond costs, on average, $24,666 after polishing and cutting. However, a significant portion of the diamond's weight is lost during cutting, and the price will also change depending on the color.

Fortunately for the couple, park visitors who discover gems are permitted to keep their finds and even give them names. The HIMO was the name given by the Ericksons as a tribute to each of their children's initials, Newsweek reports.