Boy Finds 5-Carat ‘God’s Glory’ Diamond In Arkansas State Park

Murfreesboro, AR — A 12-year-old North Carolina boy found a 5.16-carat honey brown diamond in Arizona’s Crater of Diamonds State Park last month.

Michael Dettlaff and his family were traveling to Fayetteville, Arkansas, to spend time with family when they decided to take a detour to visit the state park.

On July 31, Dettlaff found the diamond after searching for less than 10 minutes. Dettlaff’s parents didn’t realize the magnitude of their son’s discovery until they let him and his sister take it to the park’s free identification center.

“Later on in the day, right when we were ready to quit, my wife showed it to me again and then I thought, you know, that might really be something,” Chris Dettlaff said. “We let the kids go up to the rock identification people by themselves and all of a sudden it’s like this five-carat diamond. It was just crazy after that.”

The park, which is the only diamond-producing site in the world that is open to searches by the public, has a “finders keepers” policy.

“Any diamonds, semi-precious stones, rocks, or minerals you unearth are yours to keep, regardless of their value,” the park states on its website.

Michael Dettlaff’s diamond could be worth as much as $15,000 after it is cleaned and shaped, appraisers said.

“If it can get cut and it’s valuable, I think I’d probably want to have it cut and sell it,” the pre-teen said. “If it’s not, well, then it’s a souvenir.” The boy named the gemstone the God’s Glory Diamond.

“It’s thrilling any time a child finds a diamond here at Crater of Diamonds State Park,” Park Interpreter Waymon Cox said. “Michael was excited to have found his own diamond, as just about any boy would be, but he was absolutely awestruck when he realized its significance.”

The diamond is the 27th-largest discovered at the park, and the eighth-largest brown diamond that has been certified by park staff.

A brown, 2.95-carat diamond was found in the park on the Fourth of July by a Kentucky tourist. It was named the Patriot Diamond.

What do you think of the God’s Glory Diamond?