Nether Fossil
| Biomes | |
|---|---|
| Consists of |
{
"title": "Nether Fossil",
"rows": [
{
"field": "<span class=\"nowrap\"><span class=\"sprite-file\" style=\"\">(link to File:BiomeSprite soul-sand-valley.png article, displayed as 16x16px|link=Soul Sand Valley|alt=|class=pixel-image|)</span>(link to Soul Sand Valley article, displayed as <span class=\"sprite-text\">Soul Sand Valley</span>)</span>",
"label": "(link to Biome article, displayed as Biomes)"
},
{
"field": "\n*<span class=\"nowrap\"><span class=\"sprite-file\" style=\"\">(link to File:BlockSprite bone-block.png article, displayed as 16x16px|link=Bone Block|alt=|class=pixel-image|)</span>(link to Bone Block article, displayed as <span class=\"sprite-text\">Bone Block</span>)</span>\n*<span class=\"nowrap\"><span class=\"sprite-file\" style=\"\">(link to File:BlockSprite dried-ghast.png article, displayed as 16x16px|link=Dried Ghast|alt=|class=pixel-image|)</span>(link to Dried Ghast article, displayed as <span class=\"sprite-text\">Dried Ghast</span>)</span>",
"label": "Consists of"
}
],
"invimages": [],
"images": [
"Nether fossil 1.png"
]
}
Nether fossils are fossils that generate in soul sand valleys, that can sometimes contain dried ghasts.
Generation
Nether fossils generate randomly throughout the Nether in soul sand valleys.
Structure
Nether fossils are composed of 5 to 27 bone blocks. Unlike regular fossils, they do not have a lowered structure integrity and no blocks are replaced with coal or diamond ore. They are made with the NBT structure block format and the NBT files for each fossil are stored in the folder minecraft.jar/data/minecraft/structures/nether_fossils.
Nether fossils have a 1⁄3 (~33.3%) chance of generating a dried ghast adjacent to them.
There are 14 different variants of Nether fossils:
| Structure name | Description | Consists of | Images |
|---|---|---|---|
nether_fossils/fossil_1
|
Small ribs. |
10 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_2
|
A horizontal sternum. |
10 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_3
|
Small partial ribcage. |
 | |
nether_fossils/fossil_4
|
Small ribcage structure. |
 | |
nether_fossils/fossil_5
|
One medium rib. |
 | |
nether_fossils/fossil_6
|
Large ribcage structure. |
21 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_7
|
Three sets of large ribs. |
18 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_8
|
One large rib. |
 | |
nether_fossils/fossil_9
|
Three ascending sets of medium ribs. |
15 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_10
|
One large rib. |
 | |
nether_fossils/fossil_11
|
Medium ribcage structure. |
24 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_12
|
Medium ribcage structure. |
11 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_13
|
Three large ribs. |
17 |
 |
nether_fossils/fossil_14
|
Large ribcage structure. |
26 |
 |
Data values
ID
| Structure type | Identifier |
|---|---|
 Nether Fossil | nether_fossil |
| Structure | Identifier |
|---|---|
| Nether Fossil | nether_fossil |
In Bedrock Edition, Nether fossils are not a structure.
Config
- [NBT Compound / JSON Object] Structure configuration
- [String] type:
minecraft:nether_fossil - Fields common to all structures see Template:Nbt inherit/structure/template
- [Int][NBT Compound / JSON Object] start_height: The y-value where the structure starts.
- Height provider see Template:Nbt inherit/height provider/template
- [String] type:
History
| September 28, 2019 | Nether fossils shown unnamed as part of soul sand valley biome at Minecon 2019. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 22, 2025 | Dried ghasts are shown to generate as part of Nether fossils at Minecraft LIVE - March 2025 | ||||||
| Java Edition | |||||||
| 1.16 | 20w06a | Added Nether fossils. | |||||
| 20w11a | Nether fossils can now be located with /locate. | ||||||
| 1.21.6 | 25w15a | Nether fossils can now contain dried ghasts. | |||||
| Bedrock Edition | |||||||
| 1.16.0 | beta 1.16.0.57 | Added Nether fossils. | |||||
Issues
Issues relating to "Nether Fossil" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.
Trivia
- Nether fossils are one of the 3 generated structures that never generate with loot chests (the others being swamp huts and ocean monuments).
- Nether fossils do not have coal ore (or deepslate diamond ore) variants like Overworld fossils.
- Interestingly, while Overworld fossils are considered features like trees, nether fossils are considered structures instead.
- If a nether fossil is found at the 0,0 chunk coordinate, it can be used to find a rough estimate of the location of a stronghold.
Gallery
-
A fossil in a soul sand valley. -
A Nether fossil with a dried ghast.
See also
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