Incredible moment Aussie prospector unearths $150,000 gold find in the outback after almost walking straight past it: ‘I can’t believe this’

A prospector in outback New South Wales found a large gold nugget after nearly walking past it, following several days searching near Tibooburra. The discovery is notable for its size and potential value, and came after years of fossicking among discarded metal and other rubbish.

Nicknamed the “Tibooburra Spud”, the quartz-speckled nugget weighs 1,218 grams and contains about 940 grams of pure gold. The prospector estimated it could be worth $150,000 to $160,000, or as much as $200,000 to a collector; a Broken Hill prospecting-supplies seller said finds of that weight are rare. Gold recently reached almost $8,000 per troy ounce and is now about $5,700.