Teacher Finds Diamond In Arkansas State Park While On Family Vacation

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A Nebraska teacher was on a leisurely, well-deserved vacation when he found something that made his trip with his family even more exciting.
Josh Lanik is most certainly one extremely lucky guy.

Shiny

The 36-year-old teacher from Hebron, Nebraska, came across a pretty little shiny stone while at the Crater Of Diamonds State Park in Murfreesboro, Arkansas.
The question is, was it in fact a diamond?

Rolled

Lanik recalled his discovery saying: “It was blatantly obvious there was something different about it, I saw the shine, and when I picked it up and rolled it in my hand. I noticed there weren’t any sharp edges.”
But would the Park agree?

Discover

Lanik showed his wife the stone, and then they carefully placed it in a paper bag, amongst other rocks and minerals they had discovered.
They wanted to have park professionals assess and appraise the stone.

Pillbox

The family stopped at the Diamond Discovery Centre on their way out of the park.
The staff member, at first, wouldn’t confirm their find. But he put the stone into a pillbox and took it to the office. Was it really a diamond?

Carat

Lanik would be asked to enter the office as they broke the news to him. The gem was correctly identified as a diamond and the biggest found in the park in the year 2019.
But what would be done with the rock? And how many carats is the stone?

Rainfall

According to the park interpreter, the stone was found because of a record-breaking rain that had recently hit the park. About 14 inches of rain fell on the 16th of July.
Days after the rainfall, park staff registered numerous diamonds found right on the surface of the search area. But what was special about Lanik’s diamond?

Uncle Sam

Josh went on to name the stone the Lanik Family Diamond, which weighed in at 2.12 carats. He was very happy to keep the stone.
The largest diamond ever to be found in the park was in 1924, a 40.23 carat stone named Uncle Sam.