Weighing six tons and standing 5ft tall, this luminous pearl may be hard to shift physically speaking – but even with a mammoth £88million price tag it shouldn’t be too hard to find a buyer.

The stone, formed mostly of a fluorite mineral, glows green in the dark and is prized more highly than diamonds in China.

It was unearthed in the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia and took its finders three years to grind the raw gem down to its pearl shape.

It has gone on show in Hainan, southern China, to attract buyers and have measurements taken for a world record bid.

It is amazing and glows a blue green in the dark,’ remarked one show organiser.

‘These pearls are very sought after in China, especially when they are this size.’

The luminous stones, sometimes known as a Chintamani, are a wish-fulfilling jewel within the Buddhist religion.

Fluorite is well known for the amazing colours it can give out, so much so that it has been given the nickname of ‘the most colourful mineral in the world’.

Its unique properties mean that the characteristic of fluorescence, when a material emits light, is named after fluorite itself.

Scientists believe that fluorite glows in the dark because of mineral impurities in the lattice that makes up its structure, as well as exposure to radiation from the atmosphere over time. Green colours are slightly rarer than the others and may be due to the presence of rare earth ions such as manganese.

In fluorite, the visible light emitted is most commonly blue, but it can be almost any colour imaginable -like this green pearl ‘.

Fluorite is also sometimes thermoluminescent – meaning it glows when heated.

Chintamani s depicted on Tibetan prayer flags and tradition maintains that one attains the Wisdom of Buddha by carrying it while reciting a prayer.

Although, such a feat might be too much of a struggle with this stone.

News of the £88m pearl follows the sale last week of the world’s most expensive diamond, which fetched £29million at a Sotheby’s auction in Geneva.

The rectangular rare pink diamond, which weighs 24.78 carats, was bought by the British billionaire jeweller Laurence Graff, 72.

Dubbed ‘The King of Bling’ – Mr Graff said that he had bought the gem for himself and immediately named it ‘The Graff Pink’. (Mail Online)

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Playing happily with his two older brothers, little Rishabh Ghimire seems just like any other contented one-year-old.

But a closer look at the scars on his abdomen will give a hint to the Nepalese youngster’s shocking start in life.

Rishabh was born with a massive growth attached to his stomach.

It was a half-formed parasitic twin, with two arms and two legs but no head, which was feeding off his blood supply and slowly draining life from the stricken child.

Mercifully Rishabh’s life was saved thanks to a ground-breaking operation earlier this year, which removed the deadly growth.

The story of the eight-limbed youngster – dubbed Octoboy – gripped Rishabh’s native Nepal and India, where some even believed he was a Hindu god.

Born to dad Rishi and mum Januka in January last year, Rishabh is one of 200,000 children afflicted with the rare condition annually.

It occurs when twins fail to separate in the womb and the less developed body remains attached to its host sibling, leeching energy to remain alive.

Time was running out for Rishabh, who would certainly have died without the operation. (The Sun)

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A child prodigy has become Britain’s youngest composer after achieving Grade 8 in violin and piano – aged just seven.

Edward Tomanek began playing the piano aged three and then begged his parents – who have never played any instruments – to buy him a violin.

Practising up to eight hours a day, he passed his Grade 8 violin exam with a distinction aged six before achieving Grade 8 on piano this summer.

He is believed to be the youngest musician in Britain to achieve these grades – the highest in music – and has now begun composing his own pieces.

Although in that respect he is a little behind Mozart who was composing by the age of five and performing in front of European royalty.

Edward, who studies with a scholarship at King’s College School, Cambridge, says his musical inspiration is the composer Frederic Chopin.

He said: ‘Chopin is one of my favourites. He puts a lot of emotion into his music.’

When asked what he enjoys doing on Sundays, Edward added: ‘I usually do a concert for my Mum and Dad.’

His mother Lyudmilla, 34, who was born in Russia, and father Stuart, 46, have never played instruments and revealed they never ‘pushed’ him to practice.

Lyudmilla said: ‘I thought it would be nice for him to play a little bit of piano, just for his general development.

‘Not very much, just nursery rhymes with one hand. But within a couple of months he said: "I want a violin."

‘He had a little toy tennis racket, and he used to stand in front of the television and pretend to be playing it like a violin, so we thought we’d encourage it.

‘When he’s got a clear run he could practice for three or four hours per instrument if we let him.

‘If he’s not playing then he’ll be composing, or he’ll get out his chemistry set. And he loves dipping into languages – old English, Latin, Greek.

Edward is now a member of the Royal College of Music Junior Department and spends every Saturday having lessons, playing in chamber groups and composing music.

Nick Robinson, who is headmaster of King’s College School, and chairman of the charity Future Talent, which funds Edward’s violin lessons, has described his talent as ‘astonishing’.

He said: ‘Academically he’s extremely bright – he’s actually a year ahead of where he should be.

‘But he’s a stunning player with great musical talent and obviously a great love of music. He just sort of connects with the music. It’s astonishing.

‘It’s great seeing him blossom.’ (Daily Mail)

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How did the crocodile cross the lake?

He hopped on the back of a hippo to get to the other side.

It may sound like a joke but these amazing pictures from Tanzania capture a crazy croc doing just that.

Caught in the middle of a hippopotamus fight, the reptile grabbed on to one of the powerful mammals’ backs.

The three-ton beast was so distracted by the commotion around her that she had no idea a five-year-old predator was perched on top of her.

British wildlife guide Mark Johnson took the incredible pictures while he was guiding tourists on a river safari on the Luwego River near Lukula.

The female hippo made her way to shore but ended up with the scaly intruder on her back as she emerged from the water.

Mr Johnson, who moved to Tanzania as a child, and his group watched in amazement as the croc clung on for half-a-minute before it slid into the water.

‘It has to be one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen,’ he said.

‘It was a gorgeous October afternoon – a peak time of year for game viewing – and we were driving up the sand banks in the middle of the river.

‘It’s dry at this time of year and all the animals congregate at the remaining water, bringing crocs and hippos a bit closer than they usually like.

‘Two huge male bulls in close proximity erupted into a fight, causing the rest of the herd to head away.

‘In the excitement I think the croc sought refuge from being stood on and had climbed on to a passing hippo’s back.

‘After a while the croc unceremoniously fell off her and we all burst into laughter.’

Hippopotami and crocodiles do not generally interact with each other – but their love of the same water-based habitat sometimes causes unavoidable clashes.

The mighty herbivores are usually too big to be threatened by crocodiles.

Extremely heavy hippos can outrun humans. Known as one of Africa’s most dangerous animals, they have been recorded running at speeds of up to 19mph on their short stubby legs.

Crocodiles live up to a staggering 150 years and can survive on just one big meal a year. (wrapup)

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A 70-year-old angler will have no need to visit his local chippie for the foreseeable future – after reeling in a record-breaking halibut that weighed more than 34 stone.

Gunther Hansel spent more than two hours battling with the 8ft 2in flatfish while on a trip to Iceland’s Western Fjords.

And when he finally got his prize alonhgside his fishing boat, the German pensioner needed the help of five crewmates to haul the beast aboard.

The monster fish weighed in at a mighty 482lbs 13ozs – big enough to serve up almost 1,000 individual fillets.

But rather than shop around for a bigger freezer, Gunther sold his prize catch for around £2,500 once he returned to shore.

Gunther, from Magdeburg near Berlin, said afterwards: ‘This is the fish I have been fishing for all my life.’

He used a 30lb line and a plastic lure to snare the fish.

Halibut thrive in cold north Atlantic waters and can reach up to 15 feet in length.

The previous record for a halibut was held by anglers Bosse Carlsson and Hans-Olov Nilsson who caught a 464lbs speciman off Norway in July 2009. (Daily Mail)

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Two Amazon women dodge among jungle huts — after their secret lost tribe in Peru boobed by being discovered.

The bare-breasted natives belong to a group of nomads never previously known to exist.

Astonished nature reserve staff were on the lookout for illegal loggers when they stumbled upon them crossing a river as they hunted for food.

The tribe had never before had contact with the outside world, spoke an unknown tongue — and did not even have a name for themselves.

The wandering natives — sporting rings in their noses and mouths and using spears and knives to hunt — were tracked to a temporary village built of cane and palm leaves.

Peruvian officials kept their existence at the Kugapakori Nahua Nanti reserve under wraps for a year so the tribe could be secretly studied — but they finally came clean yesterday.

Mayta Capac Alatrista, who works with Peru’s Indians to preserve their ancient ways, said: "We have a photographic record.

"We have even been able to interact with them to see how they go about their daily lives.

"We’ve also been able to bring them some tools that they have used to hunt, to fish and cook." (wrapup)

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For a 33-year-old man who was looking for his biological mother, it was the last thing he expected to find.

Following a series of back problems Kansas-based Richard Lorenc decided to find out more about his family tree.

And six weeks after asking the authorities in Kansas, he had his answer: His mother was a 62-year-old bearded hermaphrodite who performed at circuses.

Vivian Wheeler and Richard’s maternal grandmother, he was informed, both suffered from hypertrichosis, or werewolf syndrome – meaning they had facial hair, even as children.

This intrigued Richard, and he was determined to find out more – and meet his long-lost mother.

And, having searched on the Internet, discovered pictures of a woman with the same name working at sideshows and circuses.

‘I knew it was her as soon as I saw the picture online,’ he said. ‘We have a resemblance.’

He had no way to contact her, though, and he pestered a number of people who knew her in the trade, including George ‘The Giant’ McArthur, who at 7ft 3ins is the world’s tallest sword-swallower.

Only a few weeks later Vivian happened to attend an event George was performing in, and the giant was able to tell her about her boy wanting to contact her.

A Seventh-Day Adventist, she was overjoyed and thought it a miracle.

‘The Holy Spirit told me to go,’ she said. ‘He told me George had something to tell me that was very important.

‘I hollered at him from behind, and he turned around and told me my son was looking for me.

‘I told God I wanted to know if I had grandchildren and if my son was alive. Then, like snapping your fingers, his wife called me.’

Vivian and Richard on the Maury Povich show, where the results of the DNA tests will be revealed

Richard’s wife, Jessica, contacted Vivian to check some details before he agreed to meet up with her and find out more about her life.

They met for three days in Bakersfield, California, in June and now wheelchair-bound Vivian told her son about her life.

They have had a DNA test on the popular American chat show Maury Povich to ascertain whether they are actually mother and son, and the results will be revealed on Wednesday.

‘I want to share the story, and I want to know for sure if it’s my son,’ she said. ‘Even if not, I still love him.’

As she was born with both male and female reproductive organs, her mother, who wanted a girl, instructed the doctors to remove the masculine parts.

Her father, however, was humiliated by his hairy daughter and made her work at sideshows from an early age, forcing her to send back money she earned.

When she embarked on relationships with men, she would often shave back her fluff so as not to embarrass – or undermine – them.

The father of Richard was a carnival ride operator she had met in Nebraska and took the baby away from her soon after the birth.

She desperately wanted her son back and the stress caused her to have a mental breakdown on stage.

And when Vivian’s mother died in 1990, she decided to stop shaving her beard entirely – it’s now 11 inches long. ‘I let it grow back to be myself,’ she said.

‘Without my beard, I’m not me. I’m pretending to be someone I’m not.’

Meanwhile Richard moved into an orphanage before his father, Richard James Chambers Snr. regained custody of him and took him to Kansas.

When teachers at his school began to notice abuse marks on his body, he was moved to a foster home.

Aged seven he was adopted and became Richard Kevin Ryan, and when he married, he took his wife’s surname, Lorenc.

‘Whatever happens, I want to be there with her. It’s a great adventure. It’s an unbelievable story, and I just want to be there for the ride with her and spend time with her,’ he said. (Mail Online)

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Breast implants, nose jobs and face lifts aren’t traditional attributes of a beauty queen, but for Miss Plastic 2010 they are an absolute requirement.

The pageant in Budapest, Hungary, is only for contestants who have enhanced their charms with cosmetic surgery.

And judges say the standards are so high that it’s nip and tuck for first place among the 22 contestants in the national rounds of Miss Plastic 2010.

Girls can only qualify for the contest if they have received cosmetic surgery and must bring in their medical notes from the ops as proof.

Judges will then rate them on their beauty – and a special medical panel will add extra marks once they have rated the quality of the plastic surgery.

The winner will go on to a face off with international contestants in Miss Plastic Universe.

Contestant Timea Kertesz, 27 – who has had boob and buttock implants – said: ‘It started when I was 17 and I persuaded my mum to agree to an operation to pin back my sticking out ears.

‘I suddenly discovered I was much more confident and from that moment on I have never stopped improving what Nature gave me." (wrapup)

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Most of us would be happy with landing a handful of two-pointers on an arcade basketball game.

But this Japanese trick shot would clearly put most of us to shame after landing an astonishing 256 points in just 60 seconds.

With a speed of shot that would embarrass most NBA players, the teenager rattles off 128 consecutive baskets without a single miss.

And she is even unruffled after another gamer wanders past and a members of staff emerges from a doorway right in her line of vision.

It is unclear whether the impressive feat is genuine, but the girl does appear to tire as she continues her prodigious scoring run.

A member of staff at the Japanese gaming arcade watches on in awe as the girl lands a record score on the machine.

After completing her impressive feat she walks off with an embarrassed smile before collecting a bundle of prize tickets. (Daily Mail)

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A photographer in Mexico claims he captured a real ‘bird’s eye view’ when a flock of flamingos gathered in this incredible shape.

Bobby Haas explained he had spent half an hour photographing the birds in their natural habitat from the air and was ready to head home. Yet just as the helicopter turned to leave he noticed the flamingos created an unusual formation.

Mr Haas said: ‘I was just leaving when I noticed that the flock was moving into a shape resembling a flamingo. I told the pilot to whip around but go in slowly, since if you startle the flock they will splinter’.

His chance to snap the birds was fleeting and Haas only managed to take one picture. It wasn’t until he developed it months later that the picture’s true majesty became clear.

‘It’s the holy grail in photography when you capture an image you’ve never seen before and may never see again.

‘It really was a spiritual moment’, Mr Haas added.

‘Some people have actually said that the image is divine intervention and proof that there is a God.’

Holy creation seems like a stretch, but it is certainly a once in a lifetime snap. (Metro)

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