The California gold rush that ignited in 1848 saw fortune-seekers
poring over hundreds of miles of northern California for tiny bits of
bling. One modern-day panner finds his fortune on the 0.2-mile stretch
of 47th Street in midtown Manhattan.
As an urban panner, Raffi Stepanian hangs around the glitziest part of the city: the Diamond District. But he’s not dabbling in the trade in the shops and boutiques – he’s digging around in the sidewalk cracks for fractures and splinters of the precious metals and gems.
So it’s not a historic fortune, but Stepanian has made up to $300 a day with his urban panning technique. His materials are simple: a butter knife, a dustpan and a coffee can. Scouring the streets on his hands and knees, he collects gold dust and flakes buried in dirt and pavement. Tiny gold links, rubies and even diamonds are embedded in the mud packed into the sidewalk cracks. Most bits, he says, have been inadvertently dropped by sellers or buyers and are too small to see by the average pedestrian – which helps Stepanian bring in profits. A diamond mere millimeters in diameter can fetch up to $30 when he sells it back, due largely to the fact that the stone is already cut and polished. More
As an urban panner, Raffi Stepanian hangs around the glitziest part of the city: the Diamond District. But he’s not dabbling in the trade in the shops and boutiques – he’s digging around in the sidewalk cracks for fractures and splinters of the precious metals and gems.
So it’s not a historic fortune, but Stepanian has made up to $300 a day with his urban panning technique. His materials are simple: a butter knife, a dustpan and a coffee can. Scouring the streets on his hands and knees, he collects gold dust and flakes buried in dirt and pavement. Tiny gold links, rubies and even diamonds are embedded in the mud packed into the sidewalk cracks. Most bits, he says, have been inadvertently dropped by sellers or buyers and are too small to see by the average pedestrian – which helps Stepanian bring in profits. A diamond mere millimeters in diameter can fetch up to $30 when he sells it back, due largely to the fact that the stone is already cut and polished. More
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