A FORMER rubbish collector turned gold prospector has found what could be one of the largest gold nuggets ever discovered, worth £172,000.

Syd Pearson found gold in the form of a 4.3kg nugget while digging in the Australian state of Victoria.

Looking for a hobby, Syd Pearson has found what is believed to be one of the largest gold nuggets ever discovered. Credit: Rex Features

This huge 4.6kg gold nugget was eventually sold to a private buyer in the US. Credit: Rex Features

The gold prospector who named the nugget after his wife Catherine said he “sat there and shook it” at the time. Credit: Rex Features

The 68-year-old spoke of how his metal detector went off and he heard the distinctive “clinking” sound as he poked the ground with a pickaxe.

But Syd still believed it was a “rabbit trap or tin” and was shocked by its discovery in December last year.

“I never let it go, I just sat there and shook,” he said.

He found the nugget in Dunolly, Victoria, which is part of the “Golden Triangle”.

The gold from this region is considered the purest in the world, at around 96 percent.

Prospectors, who still flock there 166 years after the first gold rush began, only need a £12 permit to claim the gold.

Syd named the nugget “Lady Catherine” after his wife and had two replicas made before selling it to a private American buyer.

This incredible discovery could see even more seekers flocking to Australia’s ‘Golden Triangle’ Credit: Rex Features

“It’s not just the value of this, I’ve achieved something,” Mr Pearson added.

“I spent 37 years trying and I always dreamed of finding the big one. “I was persistent and never gave up.”

Weighing 72kg, the “Welcome Stranger”, discovered in 1869, remains the largest nugget ever discovered in Australian history.

Today, it would be worth almost £2.3 million.