In a dazzling turn of events, a man has unearthed a 4.87-carat diamond during his first ever visit to the renowned Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas.
Jerry Evans, accompanied by his girlfriend, stumbled upon the precious find within the first 10 minutes of their expedition back in the spring. Initially he mistook the radiant gem for a mere piece of clear glass, but it turned out to be much more.
The unsuspecting treasure hunter casually stashed the gem in his pocket among other collected items before heading home.
"I thought it might be a piece of glass, it was so clear. I really didn't know," Evans said. "We were picking up everything thinking it was a diamond."
It was only after some contemplation that Evans decided to send the glittering piece to the Gemological Institute of America for a professional assessment. Weeks later, the institute confirmed the authenticity of the find, identifying it as a near-colorless diamond.
"When they called and told me it was real, I was tickled to death," said Evans.
Crater of Diamonds State Park is a 911-acre park located in Pike County, Arkansas, about 60 miles east of the Arkansas-Oklahoma border. One of the few diamond-bearing sites in the world accessible to the public, it features a 37.5-acre plowed field where visitors can search for a variety of rocks, minerals, and gemstones, and keep what they find.
The park has yielded over 35,000 diamonds since becoming a state park. Notable diamonds found at the Crater include the 40.23-carat Uncle Sam, the largest diamond ever unearthed in the U.S.
An on-site Diamond Discovery Center provides information about diamonds, rocks, and minerals found at the park, as well as guidance on how to search for diamonds.
State park authorities have confirmed that Evans' discovery is the most substantial registered at the site since Kevin Kinard of Maumelle uncovered a 9.07-carat brown diamond on Labor Day 2020.
"I'm glad that Mr. Evans was able to bring his historic diamond back to the park to have it officially registered," Assistant Park Superintendent Waymon Cox said. "Mr. Evans' diamond is spectacular to see. It's a complete crystal with a brilliant white color reminiscent of many other large, white diamonds I've seen from here in the past."
In the tradition of the park's visitors, Evans christened his gem the "Evans Diamond," before encouraging other interested people to visit the park and search for themselves.
"Come and search, because there's a chance. They're out there," Evans said.
This isn't the first time an unsuspecting couple have uncovered something incredible at the Crater of Diamonds State Park. In 2022, Jessica and Seth Erickson visited the park as part of a multi-state road trip for their 10th anniversary.
When they spotted a gem the color of iced tea, they took it to the park's Diamond Discovery Center, where staff registered it as a 1.90-carat brown diamond.
Correction 12/20/23, 11:11 a.m. ET: This story's headline was updated to correct to state park.
Update 12/20/23, 11:11 a.m. ET: This story was updated with additional pictures and comment from the Arkansas Department of Parks.
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