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Aussie's amazing $12,500 find after heavy rains: 'What the hell'

A Queensland man is thanking his lucky stars after uncovering a precious gemstone during a recent evening walk.

Matt Betteridge lives on fossicking land near Rubyvale in Queensland's Gemfields. According to the Queensland government, the area encompasses land which attracts commercial interest for deeper mining but also includes patches of ground suitable for shallow hand excavation.

Walking about 100 metres near his land, Mr Betteridge spotted something special after recent rains had seemingly helped expose it.

In a TikTok video sharing the moment, he scrapes back dirt and tries to pull the gemstone out only to realise it's too big and requires more excavation.

"Holy dooly ... No way!" he exclaims.

"Holy dooly ... what the hell."

Seen hidden in the dirt is an 834-carat Australian sapphire. Source: TikTok
Hidden in the dirt was an 834-carat Australian sapphire. Source: TikTok

The result, he says, is "an absolutely massive" 834-carat Australian sapphire.

"Look at the size of the crystal there," he says in the clip, sounding deliriously happy.

According to Mr Betteridge, the sapphire is "very roughly" worth about $12,500, telling followers on TikTok he was "beyond stoked".

"So chuffed I can’t even explain," he wrote.

Speaking to the ABC, he recalled the moment he came across the lucky find.

"The rain unearthed it that little bit … I thought it was going to be an average-sized stone until I couldn't pull it out," he said.

'Speckers' like Matt don't mind all this rain.
'Speckers' like Matt don't mind all this rain. Source: TikTok

According to the ABC, the region is one of the largest sapphire-bearing areas in the world and Mr Betteridge was 'specking' at the time, describing the practice of walking around scanning the ground for precious stones.

With so much rain recently, gem hunters like Mr Betteridge are out in force, believing they have a better chance of spotting the lucrative gemstones after heavy rain has washed away topsoil.

"All the speckers are out covering ground, even in-between the showers," he said.

The clip of his lucky find has racked up tens of thousands of views, prompting congratulations as well as a slew of questions from followers.

"You can keep your finds but if you sell over a certain amount you pay a percentage for royalties [to the government]," Mr Betteridge explained.

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