Barry Smith, a granddad from Germantown, Tennessee, found a 2.29-carat yellow diamond while visiting Crater of Diamonds State Park on Aug. 16, 2026. Crater of Diamonds State Park
To the untrained eye, the land looked worthless. But to Barry Smith and his granddaughters, the 37-acre plowed field at Crater of Diamonds State Park felt less like a construction site and more like an epic treasure hunt.
The August sun was hot. Smith, his wife, and their two granddaughters, Sage and Juniper, headed out of the visitors’ center hauling newly rented gear, just a few shovels and a little wagon. The open field was ripe for plucking what this park in Arkansas is famous for: diamonds.
They didn’t know it yet, but the family from Germantown, Tennessee, would unearth an impressive 2.29-carat canary gem this day—marking the park’s third-largest diamond registered all year. Not bad for a classic American road trip.
Barry Smith, from Germantown, Tennessee, holds up his 2.29-carat yellow diamond, which he christened the Sage Juniper Diamond after his granddaughters. Crater of Diamonds State Park
Smith’s 2.29-carat yellow diamond measured about the size of a black-eyed pea. Crater of Diamonds State Park
Smith wasn’t expecting to find anything more than a good time. But just 30 minutes into their adventure a bright yellow sparkle caught his eye. A piece of mica. Quartz maybe. He doubted it was a diamond until he noted its size, then tucked the tiny rock safely into his shirt pocket.
He continued shoveling into the soil until noon.
“It started to get so hot we couldn’t stand it,” Smith later told Arkansas park staff. “So we decided to head in around lunchtime.”
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Smith didn’t wait until after lunch to have his stone inspected. He strode into the park’s Diamond Discovery Center where staff gasped at the gem. It was a diamond alright, 2.29 carats, the color of a bright-yellow canary. About the size of a black-eyed pea.
“I was dumbfounded when I first saw the diamond,” said Ralph Hall, the facility’s supervisor. “Its overall shape and color immediately reminded me of the Pearadin Schumacher American Dream Diamond found earlier this year.”
Smith shows his Sage Juniper Diamond and registration tag on Aug. 16, 2026. Crater of Diamonds State Park
Smith registered his 2.29-carat yellow diamond, dubbing it the Sage Juniper Diamond after his two granddaughters. Crater of Diamonds State Park
Yellow diamonds found here are less common than white or brown ones. The golden hue is caused by nitrogen being absorbed into the crystal during its formation. These impurities absorb blue light, letting yellow wavelengths shine through.
A geological lottery draw.
Before packing up his diamond and hitting the road with his family, Smith officially registered his stone and gave it a name. Crater of Diamonds State Park has a long tradition where its finders christen their diamonds. Smith honored his two granddaughters, calling his gem the Sage Juniper Diamond.
Barry Smith, his wife, and their two granddaughters pose with the diamond he found at Crater of Diamonds State Park on Aug. 16, 2026. Crater of Diamonds State Park
Over 75,000 diamonds have been plucked from this ancient volcanic crater over the past 120 years. Its former owner, farmer John Huddleston, discovered its riches in 1906, long before it became a state park in 1972. It’s vast yields have long sputtered, however. Visitors today only find one to two diamonds per day.
Now Smith’s Sage Juniper Diamond will join that history, marking the park’s 351st diamond of 2026.
“I never expected to find a diamond here,” he said. “The potential was there, but you never come here expecting to find one.”
