World’s Most Valuable Piece of Jade Unearthed in Myanmar

Miners in Myanmar have uncovered a giant jade stone weighing 175 tonnes.

The gem is 14ft high and 19ft long, and is reportedly worth an estimated $170 million.

The stone – second only in size to the carved statue at the Jade Buddha Palace in China which weighs 260 tonnes – was found in Phakant mine in the jade-producing Kachin state, northern Myanmar.

Myanmar, also known as Burma, is the source of nearly all of the world’s finest jadeite, a near-translucent green stone.

The jade industry is responsible for nearly half of Myanmar’s GDP.

One of Myanmar’s biggest markets is neighboring China, where it is known as the “stone of heaven”.