‘Quartz’ found in gravel at state park was actually ‘big, ugly’ diamond, photos show

David Anderson was searching through wet-sifted gravel at an Arkansas state park when a gemstone caught his eye.

“At first I thought it was quartz but wondered why it was so shiny,” Anderson told officials with Crater of Diamonds State Park. “Once I picked it up, I realized it was a diamond!”

More specifically, it was a 3.29-carat brown diamond he had discovered during one of his regular visits to the park on Saturday, March 4, according to a news release.

This is the largest diamond found at the state park — “one of the only places in the world where the public can search for real diamonds in their original volcanic source” — since September 2021, officials said. It’s also the largest brown diamond found at Crater of Diamonds State Park since Labor Day 2020.

Searchers who discover diamonds in the park often name their finds, and Anderson was no exception.

He has named it B.U.D. — “that’s for Big, Ugly Diamond,” according to the release. It’s aptly named for its size, pitted surface and brown coloring.

“Mr. Anderson’s diamond is about the size of an English pea, with a light brown color and octahedron shape,” park interpreter Tayler Markham said in the release. “It has a metallic shine typical of all diamonds found at the park, with a partially resorbed surface and lots of inclusions.”

Anderson, of Murfreesboro, plans to sell the diamond, as he often does with diamonds he finds at the park.

Since he first visited the park in 2007 after hearing about it on the Travel Channel, he’s found more than 400 diamonds, officials said. His top finds include a 3.83-carat yellow diamond from 2011 and a 6.19-carat white gem from 2014.

“After I found my first diamond, a 1.5-carat white, I was hooked,” he said.

On average, park visitors find about one to two diamonds each day as they search through a 37.5-acre plowed field, “the eroded surface of an ancient, diamond-bearing volcanic crater.”

More than 35,000 diamonds have been found since 1972.

Crater of Diamonds State Park is in Murfreesboro, part of southwest Arkansas.

This story was originally published March 15, 2023 at 10:14 AM with the headline "‘Quartz’ found in gravel at state park was actually ‘big, ugly’ diamond, photos show."