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Fossils are items on Fossil Island that are used to build displays on the bottom floor of the Varrock Museum (below the natural history floor). Completing a display requires a complete set of one type of fossil (i.e. small/medium/large/rare) and grants 2 kudos and an experience lamp based on the type of category of the fossils. They can be sold to the Fossil Collector in exchange for numulites, or used on the mycelium pool to create enriched bones which can be further processed to eventually gain some Prayer experience.

Fossil Uses[]

In the Varrock Museum, there are 14 small displays, 12 medium displays, 5 large displays and 5 plant displays. You will need a set of each fossil to complete one display. In total, you will need 70 small fossils, 60 medium fossils, 25 large fossils and 25 plant fossils. Note that unidentified large fossils have a chance of becoming either large fossils or plant fossils.

The mycelium pool will turn fossils into enriched bones which give prayer experience.

The Fossil Collector gives numulites in return for identified or unidentified fossils found around the island:

Obtaining Fossils[]

Fossils may be obtained from Mairin's Market and from certain actions that roll the fossil drop table.

Every time you roll the fossil drop table, there is a chance you may receive either a fossil, numulite or nothing.

If you receive a fossil, the chance of you receiving each kind of fossil is as follows:

Fossil type Drop chance
Unidentified small fossil Unidentified small fossil 50%
Unidentified medium fossil Unidentified medium fossil 25%
Unidentified large fossil Unidentified large fossil 20%
Unidentified rare fossil Unidentified rare fossil 5%

The fossil drop table is as follows:

Actions dropping fossils and numulites[1]
Method Fossil Numulite Nothing
Herbiboar icon Herbiboar (per trail reveal with experience drop)

(About 2.56 rolls per Herbiboar)[2]

7/175 4% 63/175 36% 105/175 60%
Iron ore fragment Getting fragment from Volcanic mine 5/175 2.9% 45/175 25.7% 125/175 71.4%
Fishbowl helmetUnderwater thieving (per experience drop) 6/175 3.4% 54/175 30.9% 115/175 65.7%
Bowl of fish Bowl of fish 2/175 1.1% 18/175 10.3% 155/175 88.6%
Sulliuscep cap Sulliusceps (per experience drop) 5/175 2.9% 45/175 25.7% 125/175 71.4%
Swamp tar Tar Monster 5/175 2.9% 45/175 25.7% 125/175 71.4%
Hoop snake Hoop Snake 3/175 1.7% 27/175 15.4% 145/175 82.9%
Explosive potion Deranged Archaeologist 12/175 6.9% 108/175 61.7% 55/175 31.4%
Pet rock Ammonite Crab 3/175 1.7% 27/175 15.4% 145/175 82.9%
Fungicide spray Ancient Zygomite 7/175 4% 63/175 36% 105/175 60%
Raw lobster Lobstrosity 5/175 2.9% 45/175 25.7% 125/175 71.4%
Wyvern bones Lesser Wyvern 10/175 5.7% 90/175 51.4% 75/175 42.9%
Wyvern bones Ancient Wyvern 12/175 6.9% 108/175 61.7% 55/175 31.4%
Drift net Drift net (per fish) 3/175 1.7% 27/175 15.4% 145/175 82.9%
Specimen brush Digging in camp soil 1/175 0.6% 9/175 5.1% 165/175 94.3%

Strategy[]

This guide makes the assumption that an unidentified large fossil will turn into a large fossil 50% of the time, and a plant fossil 50% of the time.

In order to complete the Varrock museum, you will need approximately 55 unidentified large fossils (95% confidence interval 50-65) in order to get 25 plant fossils and 25 identified large fossils, 60 unidentified medium fossils and 70 small fossils. The rate-limiting step are the unidentified large fossils.

Large fossil gathering[3]
Method Actions/hour Drop rate Unidentified large fossil/hour Time for 55 Unidentified large fossil
Herbiboar icon Herbiboar 130[2] 7/875 (0.8%) 1 52.9 hours
Iron ore fragment Volcanic mine 235 5/875 (0.6%) 1.3 41 hours
Fishbowl helmetUnderwater thieving

+Mairin's Market

200-240[4][5] 6/875 (0.7%)

+shop

2-2.4 22.5-27 hours
Bowl of fish Bowl of fish 5[6] 2/875 (0.2%) Get fossils from Mairin's Market instead
Sulliuscep cap Sulliusceps 591 (Woodcutting icon80);

745 (Woodcutting icon90)[7]

5/875 (0.6%) 3.4;

4.3

16.3 hours

12.9 hours

Swamp tar Tar Monster Slow 5/875 (0.6%) Long
Hoop snake Hoop Snake Slow 3/875 (0.3%) Long
Explosive potion Deranged Archaeologist ≈30[8] 12/875 (1.4%) 0.4 133.7 hours
Pet rock Ammonite Crab 162 (Strength icon72)[9] 3/875 (0.3%) 0.6 99 hours
Fungicide spray Ancient Zygomite 137 (114 melee combat) 7/875 (0.8%) 1.1 50.2 hours
Raw lobster Lobstrosity 200[10] 5/875 (0.6%) 1.1 48.1 hours
Wyvern bones Lesser Wyvern ≈35[11] 10/875 (1.1%) 0.4 137.5 hours
Wyvern bones Ancient Wyvern <≈35[12] 12/875 (1.4%) 0.5 114.6 hours
Drift net Drift net 285[13] 3/875 (0.3%) 1 56.3 hours
Specimen brush Camp soil* 1000-3000 1/875 (0.1%) 1.1-3.4 16-48.1 hours

*Extremely click-intensive - 3000 is the theoretical maximum with mousekeys - expect slower rates

Thieving and Mairin's Market[]

If you are using Mairin's Market, you should save your points and then evaluate the specific fossils you need to achieve your total of 25 plant fossils, 25 large identified fossils and 60 medium fossils.


References[]

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