1.5 kg of emerald found inside rock

A deposit of emerald crystals weighing an estimated 1.5 kg has been discovered in a lump of rock in Russia, an official said.

The rock was found in Sverdlovsk region, said Firat Nurmukhametov, director of the rocks centre of the Urals Mining Institute.

Vladimir Dyagilev, an entrepreneur from the minerals-rich city of Yekaterinburg, said he bought a lot at an auction at the Kaliningrad Amber Factory that included a lump of rock with emerald fragments in it.

Suspecting there might be more emeralds inside the rock, he gave it to specialists and asked them to chip away at it.

They discovered the deposit of gemstones inside. Dyagilev said the piece of rock weighs 2.3 kg, of which about 1.5 kg is emerald.

Dyagilev said the fragment of rock containing the emeralds was originally valued at 300,000 rubles ($9,700).

The rock will be put on show in an exhibition titled "The Emerald Room", which will open May 1 at the Sverdlovsk region governor's residence.