Fossil
| Type | Block |
|---|---|
| Replaces | Redstone Ore |
| Stackable | Yes (64) |
| Resource location | minecraft:redstone_ore |
| Defined in | redstone_ore.json |
A fossil is an ore that drops bones. It is the vanilla redstone ore, renamed and given new drops and generation in 1.12.8-beta; before that, the same block was the sulfurous quartz deposit, which dropped sulfur and quartz. Fossils give a source of bones that doesn't depend on killing skeletons, which the release notes sum up as "Peaceful bones".[1] The deepslate variant of the same ore is still the sulfur deposit.
Obtaining
Natural generation
Fossils generate in every Overworld biome in veins of up to 8 blocks, 4 attempts per chunk, between y=16 and y=56, most often around y=36.[2] This replaces the vanilla redstone placement (4 attempts per chunk spread evenly from the world bottom to y=15). The vein uses the vanilla redstone ore feature, which places fossils in stone, granite, diorite, andesite and tuff, and a sulfur deposit wherever it meets deepslate. The vanilla lower redstone veins, deep in the deepslate layer, are unchanged and only place sulfur deposits.
Breaking
Mined with a copper pickaxe or better (a wooden pickaxe or copper dolabra gets nothing; see Tools#Mining levels), it drops 2–5 bones. Fortune and electrum tools each add to the count with the usual ore bonus. Silk Touch drops the block itself.[3][4][5]
Usage
Bones from fossils are ordinary bones, used for bone meal and anything else that takes a bone.
History
| 0.4-alpha | As the sulfurous quartz deposit, now drops both sulfur and quartz,[6] and its texture matches the vanilla sulfur blocks.[7] |
|---|---|
| 1.12.8-beta October 23, 2026 |
Trivia
- The release notes add: "Yes I know fossils are actually mineralised bones and aren't really bones don't @ me".[8]
References
- ↑ Matcha Flavoured 1.12.8-beta release notes: "Fossil "Ore" can now be found (Peaceful bones!)"
- ↑
placed feature/ore redstone.json - ↑
blocks/redstone ore.json - ↑
non mineable/wood.json - ↑
crafting/copper dolabra.json - ↑ Matcha Flavoured 0.4-alpha release notes: "Fixed Sulfurous Quartz so that it drops both sulfur and quartz."
- ↑ Matcha Flavoured 0.4-alpha release notes: "Sulfur ores changed to match vanilla sulfur blocks (including Sulfurous Hellstone)"
- ↑ Matcha Flavoured 1.12.8-beta release notes: "Yes I know fossils are actually mineralised bones and aren't really bones don't @ me"
