This Australian Man Just Found A Gold Nugget Worth $160,000 Using A Budget Metal Detector

An amateur gold hunter armed only with a budget metal detector recently discovered a gigantic rock filled with gold in the “Golden Triangle” of Victoria, Australia, which is between Ballarat, Bendigo, and St Arnaud.

The gold-loaded rock was estimated to weigh just over 4.6 kilograms (10.1 pounds), with 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of the weight being precious metal. The discovery was valued at a cool AU$240,000 (US $160,000).

Although the rock was split into two halves accidentally while unearthing it, it was still an incredible find. The gold hunter took it to Lucky Strike Gold, a prospecting shop, for evaluation. It was named the “Lucky Strike nugget,” by the company.

“He said, ‘do you think there’s $10,000 worth?’ And as soon as it hit my hand I said, ‘try $100,000’,” Darren Kamp from Lucky Strike Gold told 9News.

“And he said, ‘oh wow, the wife’s going to be happy with that’.”

Victoria, Australia experienced a gold rush in the 19th century, and recent years have seen another boom in gold discovery in the area. The Geological Survey of Victoria estimates that there may be up to 2.1 million kilograms (75 million ounces) of undiscovered gold in the central and north-central Victorian goldfields.

This region also produced the largest gold nugget ever discovered, called the “Welcome Stranger.” Found on February 5, 1869, by two Cornish miners named John Deason and Richard Oats, the nugget weighed 72 kilograms (158.7 pounds) and was 61 centimeters (24 inches) long. If discovered today, it could be worth over US$2 million.

Living in this part of the world, it may be a good time to invest in a metal detector. The metal detector used for this discovery cost around US$800, proving its worth. However, there are rules to consider when hunting for gold.