Emerald Worth $17,000 Found in Russia

The Bahia Emerald. Source: Los Angeles sheriffs department/Reuters
The Bahia Emerald. Source: Los Angeles sheriffs department/Reuters
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Emerald Worth $17,000 Found in Russia

The Bahia Emerald. Source: Los Angeles sheriffs department/Reuters
The Bahia Emerald. Source: Los Angeles sheriffs department/Reuters

An emerald weighing more than 1.6 kg has been found at the Malyshevsky field owned by the Rostec Group, according to the information department in Sverdlovsk region, Russia.

The Russian Minister of Industry and Science announced that the Malyshevskyf field is known worldwide for its precious discoveries. The company develops a comprehensive capacity development program that will ensure an increased production and, thus, new rare metals are expected to be discovered, reported Sputnik.

Evgeny Vasilevsky, director of the Malysheva Company said: “The crystal was noticed in time and raised to the surface, thereby its original form has been preserved, which highlights our employees’ high efficiency and cooperation, and therefore, they received bonuses.”

He reported that the semi-transparent light green stone had already been evaluated by employees of the State Foundation for the formation of precious metals and stones in Russia.

Vasilevsky explained that according to the preliminary data, and based on its quality, the stone belongs to the second category, and the second color. The Emerald’s price exceeds four million rubles, or $71,000, but it has not been named so far.



World War II Sergeant Whose Plane Was Shot Down over Germany Honored with Reburial in California

This 1944 photo provided by Honoring Our Fallen shows WWII veteran US Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta from Los Angeles. Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany. On Thursday, July 25, 2024 community members lined the roads to honor Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport in southern California to a burial home. (Honoring Our Fallen via AP)
This 1944 photo provided by Honoring Our Fallen shows WWII veteran US Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta from Los Angeles. Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany. On Thursday, July 25, 2024 community members lined the roads to honor Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport in southern California to a burial home. (Honoring Our Fallen via AP)
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World War II Sergeant Whose Plane Was Shot Down over Germany Honored with Reburial in California

This 1944 photo provided by Honoring Our Fallen shows WWII veteran US Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta from Los Angeles. Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany. On Thursday, July 25, 2024 community members lined the roads to honor Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport in southern California to a burial home. (Honoring Our Fallen via AP)
This 1944 photo provided by Honoring Our Fallen shows WWII veteran US Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta from Los Angeles. Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany. On Thursday, July 25, 2024 community members lined the roads to honor Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport in southern California to a burial home. (Honoring Our Fallen via AP)

After 80 years, a World War II sergeant killed in Germany has returned home to California.

On Thursday, community members lined the roads to honor US Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport to a burial home in Riverside, California, The AP reported.

Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany, according to Honoring Our Fallen, an organization that provides support to families of fallen military and first responders.

One of the surviving crewmembers saw the plane was on fire, then fell in a steep dive before exploding on the ground. After the crash, German troops buried the remains of one soldier at a local cemetery, while the other six crewmembers, including Banta, were unaccounted for.

Banta was married and had four sisters and a brother. He joined the military because of his older brother Floyd Jack Banta, who searched for Donald Banta his whole life but passed away before he was found.

Donald Banta's niece was present at the planeside honors ceremony at the Ontario airport coordinated by Honoring Our Fallen.

The remains from the plane crash were initially recovered in 1952, but they could not be identified at the time and were buried in Belgium. Banta was accounted for Sept. 26, 2023, following efforts by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency within the US Department of Defense and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System.