How to Get and Revive Fossils

Dig up fossils in the Grand Underground then have them extracted at the Oreburgh Museum. Read on for a list of fossils, and learn how to revive Fossil Pokemon and the best Fossil Pokemon to revive in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl (BDSP).

How to Get and Revive Fossils

Dig Up Fossils in Grand Underground

In the Grand Underground, dig up fossils and treasures at twinkling, yellow spots (marked with ♦ on the minimap). Interacting with the spot will trigger a digging minigame, where you can find fossils.

How to Dig for Treasure and Spheres

Fossils Have Somewhat High Spawn Rates

You can find a Skull Fossil only in Brilliant Diamond, while you can find an Armor Fossil only in Shining Pearl, as the Pokemon you revive from both fossils are version exclusive Pokemon. Both fossils have a somewhat high spawn rate via digging in their respective games.

Game Version Spawn Rates

The fossils of Pokemon not native to Sinnoh appear in both Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. However, the spawn rate for some of them differs depending on which game you are playing.

More Common in Brilliant Diamond
Omanyte Helix Fossil	Anorith Claw Fossil
More Common in Shining Pearl
Kabuto Dome Fossil	Lileep Root Fossil
Same Encounter Rate in Both Versions
Aerodactyl Old Amber

Revive Fossils at Oreburgh Museum

In the Mining Museum in Oreburgh City, talk to the scientist at the counter. If you have a fossil in your inventory, he'll offer to revive it. The fossil will be revived into a Level 1 Pokemon, which you can retrieve from him after leaving the building then going back inside.

You can only have one fossil extracted at a time.

Best Fossil Pokemon to Revive

Aerodactyl

Boasting terrific Speed and a great physical Attack stat, Aerodactyl is a formidable Flying Type Pokemon that could suit you well in the post game. On top of its diverse TM learnset that includes Fire Blast, Earthquake, and Dragon Claw, Aerodactyl can also learn the three Elemental Fang moves via Move Reminder.

Cranidos to Rampardos

For Brilliant Diamond players, Rampardos is one of the strongest Rock Type Pokemon you can have in the game. It has a tremendous physical Attack stat and a diverse TM learnset, which allows it to learn powerful Fire Blast, Thunder, Earthquake, and Avalanche, which you could utilize to cover its type disadvantages.

List of Fossils and Fossil Pokemon

Fossil		Pokemon	Type
Skull Fossil (Brilliant Diamond only)	➤	Cranidos
Armor Fossil (Shining Pearl only)	➤	Shieldon
Dome Fossil	➤	Kabuto
Helix Fossil	➤	Omanyte
Old Amber	➤	Aerodactyl
Root Fossil	➤	Lileep
Claw Fossil	➤	Anorith

Pokemon BDSP Related Guides

List of All Items and Effects

All Item Types

Item Categories
Poke Balls	TMs	Berries	Battle Items
Evolutionary Stones	Recovery Items	Fossils	Training Items
Evolutionary Held Items	Held Items	Vitamins	Valuable Items
Mints	Key Items	Slates	-