Gary Thompson has been pulling history out of the water for half a century.

He has thousands of dives under his belt, but his find this August, may be his oldest yet.

A few months ago, Thompson found this giant antler in nearby Buffalo Lake, while scuba diving.

“I came across it, and it looked like a big root to start with,” said Thompson.

But once he pulled it out of the water:

“Got it up into the boat and was just awestruck by the size of it,” said Thompson.

Thompson’s antler is massive. It’s about five feet long, and weighs about 30-pounds.

It’s not just big, it’s ancient.

“The last time there were elk reported in this area was 1850,” said Thompson.

But Thompson believes it could be much, much older, possibly from an extinct species.

“Could be, from what I’ve been told, up to 13,000 years,” said Thompson.

He did some research, and asked a few experts; but no definitive age.

“Once we find something in the water, we have to know more about it,” said Thompson.

Which is why Thompson plans on having a laboratory determine how old it is.

“It costs so much to get it carbon dated,” said Thompson.

He wants a little help so he set up a GoFundMe account.

So far he’s been given $260.00 from curious donors.

The antlers have been in the lake for a long time before Thompson found it.

He’s hopeful he won’t have to do too much waiting to find out how long.

Thompson believes he could have his answer as soon as January.

He plans on preserving the antler and donating it to a museum eventually.

Do donate to his GoFundMe account, click here.