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Most Asked Questions
Why are diamonds here?
The diamond search area at the Crater of Diamonds State Park is actually the eroded top of an ancient volcanic pipe. Around 95 million years ago, a volcanic eruption originating as deep as 70 miles formed diamonds and transported them to the surface of the earth. During the eruption, conditions were right for carbon atoms to come together and crystallize forming diamonds. Not all Lamporite deposits contain diamonds like the one at Arkansas's diamond site.
What do diamonds in the rough look like?
- Shape: Diamonds found at the Crater of Diamonds are typically smooth and well rounded. Their shape resembles a polished stone with smooth sides and rounded edges.
- Size: The average size of a diamond is about the size of paper match head and weighs approximately 20 - 25 points. Points are an increment of the measurement of diamonds. There are 100 points in a carat. So look for something small since a 1-carat diamond is about the size of a green pea.
- Appearance: To the touch, raw diamonds feel like they have an oily film on them. This characteristic prevents diamonds from getting dirty in the soil. Under muddy field conditions, rocks and minerals will be muddy. However a diamond remains clean because dirt and mud will not stick to a diamond. To the eye, diamonds have a metallic luster like new steel or lead. They will not be clear like glass. Nor will they have a solid dull look like the jasper rocks found in the park's search area, too. Diamonds are translucent, so you can see into them but not through them.
- Color: The most common colors unearthed at the Crater of Diamonds are white, brown and yellow, in that order.
How do I search for diamonds?
How you search for diamonds usually depends on how much time you have to search or how hard you want to work. There are three methods of diamond searching:
Surface searching involves walking up and down the rows of dirt looking for diamonds lying on top of the ground. Following a hard rain, this is the most productive method. Rain washes the soil away leaving diamonds and other rocks and minerals exposed on the surface.
Digging in the soil and then screening the dirt is the technique used by many visitors. This usually involves searching through the first six inches to one foot of soil. Park prospectors turn the soil over with a small hand tool while looking in the loose soil. Some prospectors like to use a screen to sift the soil. They take a small amount of soil and put in a screen and shake the screen vigorously. The remaining material in the screen is then slowly looked through. When the weather is warm, visitors will wash the soil in a screen rather than dry screening. When the diamond field is wet or muddy, the soil will not sift through the screen. Therefore, you will have to wash the dirt at one of the two washing pavilions located on the diamond search area.
The third method of diamond hunting requires a lot of hard work and previous experience. This method us usually preferred by the repeat or regular visitor. This method involves the digging of deep holes, removal of the right type soil, washing the soil in a series of screens and patiently hand sorting the concentrated gravels from the screens. The experienced prospectors are looking for low areas in the field where diamonds may have settled out over the years, or they are looking for tailings from the earlier commercial mining plants of the 1920s and 1930s. Tailings are the waste gravel that came out of the processing plant. The diamond recovery methods in the early mining plants were rudimentary compared to modern methods, so many small diamonds were not recovered by those plants. The diamonds went out of the plant with the waste gravel into a tailing pile. Over the years, these tailing piles were covered by topsoil. The experienced regular hunters look for tiny gravel, dig them up and wash them again by hand looking for the small diamonds.
Are the diamonds valuable?
The park staff can identify diamonds, but are not trained nor do they have the equipment to assess the value of a diamond. The monetary value of a diamond lies in the possibility of the diamond being cut. Several large diamonds from the Crater have been cut into "D" flawless stones which bring top dollars. Should you find a large diamond that merits cutting, the park staff can provide you with a list of diamond cutters.
Most diamonds found at the Crater of Diamonds are small diamonds that would not warrant cutting. However, they do make unique valuable souvenirs of your trip to the Crater. If desired, rough diamonds can be mounted in jewelry and worn in their raw form. The most popular method of displaying a rough diamond is to have it mounted in a pendent and worn around the neck.
In the local area, rough diamonds value from $1.00 per point to $10.00 per point or more. Therefore, a small souvenir diamond weighing 10 points might sell for $10.00 to $100.00, depending on its quality. However, the true value of a diamond really rests with its finder.
How do I know if I've found a diamond?
The park staff offers free rock and mineral identification at the visitor center. Diamonds are weighed and certified free of charge.