When people say big things come in small packages, that is not necessarily true for a lowly herder in China's far west who had no idea that his fortunes would change overnight when he struck gold - quite literally.

A Kazak herdsman from China's Qinghe County in the far western Uighur-settled Xinjiang province -  Berek Sawut - was just walking along, minding his own business, when he stumbled onto a gold chunk that weighs almost eight kilograms.

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It took a while before he realized what he tripped on. Berek told state-run news outlet Xinhua that he found the huge nugget "practically lying bare on the ground."

The fabulous gold find could be worth more than CNY1 million (more than US$255,000), if it is at least 80 percent pure gold in weight, Xinhua said. Another big gold nugget, though not as huge as the recent find at 1.8 kilograms, was also found in the region five years ago, the report added.

Gold fever hit Twitter when a purported image of the China gold nugget was being re-tweeted, but there was no independent confirmation if it is indeed the find.

Striking gold may be a lot more common than people think. A husband and wife in California also saw their fortunes changed overnight when they unearthed hundreds - 1,400 to be exact - of rare American gold coins in their backyard.

On February 5, 1869, the world's biggest gold deposit in water was discovered in Australia's town of Moliagul in Victoria state. The nugget weighed a total of 109.59 kilograms, no wonder it is called the "Welcome Stranger."

The world's second biggest intact gold chunk was also found in Australia. Based on the going gold rate of US$281 an ounce, the lump of almost pure gold that weighs 819 ounces is worth more than US$230,000.

Here is the odd thing: For several years, the nugget was hidden under the bed of an unidentified prospector who, in 1995, found it in the Kalgoorlie Region of Western Australia. The find only came to light when he tried to sell it in the United States.

TagsChinese herder, giant gold chunk, gold chunk, gold, Berek Sawut