A 7-year-old girl found the perfect birthday present when she discovered a 2.95-carat golden brown diamond in Arkansas on September 1. Aspen Brown was celebrating her seventh birthday with her family at a state park when she found the precious stone about the size of a green pea.
According to a news release from the park, the young girl's discovery "is the second-largest registered by a park guest this year, topped only by a 3.29-carat brown diamond discovery in March."
"Brown was visiting the park with her dad and grandmother to celebrate her birthday," the release reads. "Brown picked up a gem about the size of a green pea from a pathway along the northeast side of the search area."
The park official confirmed that Brown had indeed discovered a diamond.
"Aspen's diamond has a golden-brown colour and a sparkling lustre. It is a complete crystal, with no broken facets and a small crevice on one side, created when the diamond was formed," Waymon Cox, assistant park superintendent, said in the release. "It's certainly one of the most beautiful diamonds I've seen in recent years."
The park said one or two visitors discover diamonds at the park each day. Over 75,000 diamonds have been found at the site since a farmer first identified diamonds on the land.
According to the park, the largest diamond ever discovered in the United States was unearthed in 1924 during an early mining operation on the land that later became the state park.
