7-Year-Old's Birthday Hunt Produces Sparkling Find

Aspen Brown spots a gem in Arkansas state park
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 10, 2023 12:25 PM CDT
7-Year-Old Makes 2.95-Carat Discovery
Aspen Brown made her discover at discovered at Arkansas' Crater of Diamonds State Park.   (Arkansas State Parks)

Aspen Brown didn't need anyone to give her a diamond for her seventh birthday—she came up with her own. The girl was visiting Crater of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro, Arkansas, to mark her milestone with her father and grandmother on Sept. 1, a release by the park says, when she "picked up a gem about the size of a green pea from a pathway." The park confirmed her find is a 2.95-carat golden brown diamond, per CNN—the second-largest diamond found by a park visitor and registered this year.

"Aspen's diamond has a golden-brown color and a sparkling luster," said Waymon Cox, assistant park superintendent. "It is a complete crystal, with no broken facets and a small crevice on one side, created when the diamond was formed." The 37-acre field that guests can search is the eroded surface of a volcanic crater, where amethysts and garnets also can be found, the park said. One or two diamonds are found daily, and thousands have been discovered overall. The diamond larger than Aspen's that was found this year is a 3.29-carat brown one discovered in March, the park says. But Cox said Aspen's is special: "It's certainly one of the most beautiful diamonds I've seen in recent years." (More diamonds stories.)

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