Australian man finds $160,000 with low-end metal detector

An amateur Australian prospector's life turned around when he discovered a $160,000 worth of gold nugget with a low-end metal detector in Victoria’s goldfields, Insider reported. 

Darren Kamp, the owner of the prospecting store Lucky Strike Gold, said he had bought the 10-pound rock from a prospector, who wanted to remain anonymous. 

The shop owner said that the prospector asked him if the rock was worth at least $10,000; however, Kamp immediately knew that it was worth far more.

"I said, try $100,000," Kamp told Insider. "I've been prospecting 43 years and I've never seen a rock specimen with this much gold in it."

According to Kamp, the gold digger had brought only half the rock as he cracked to peek inside the rock. He left the other half at home, said Kamp. 

He added that the rock had 82 ounces of gold inside it when they reunited the two halves. "I was gobsmacked," he said. 

Kamp bought the rock from the man and termed it the "Lucky Strike Nugget". He said that he wants to keep the rock with him for a little while; however, he might sell it later. 

"It's a shame that it's been broken into two halves, though because it's broken in two, you can see a lot of gold in the rock," he said.

The shopkeeper believes that other amateur prospectors would be motivated to search for a similar rock. 

"Hobbying prospectors go out on a weekend and might be happy to find a couple of hundred dollars of gold," he said.

Similarly, in 2013, a prospector in Australia found a 177-ounce gold nugget worth $295,000. Another group found $250,000 worth of two nuggets in 2020.