Prehistoric Vertebra
| Prehistoric Vertebra | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Artifact |
| Artifact Spots | Bus Stop (0.7% + 3-5% [1]) |
| Monster Drops | Pepper Rex (30%) |
| Other Locations | Bone Node (0.8%) |
| Museum Reward | Sloth Skeleton M |
| Sell Price | 100g |
The Prehistoric Vertebra is one of the bones behind the museum's Sloth Skeleton. Donating it with the Prehistoric Rib earns Sloth Skeleton M, one of the three pieces of the set. The Bus Stop is the only place in the valley where Artifact Spots hold it, and the odds there climb in Summer and Fall. Pepper Rexes in the Skull Cavern drop the vertebra often, so hunting them is the surest route. Spare copies count toward Gunther's Fragments of the Past order, feed the Bone Mill and make the Skeleton Shirt at the Sewing Machine.
The in-game description reads: A segment of some prehistoric creature's spine.
Location
Artifact Spots appear as wriggling worms on open ground. Using a Hoe on one always gives an item, and nothing else digs them. Since the item is fixed for the day, reloading the game does not help. Winter brings many more spots across the valley.
The Bus Stop rolls for the vertebra twice. The first roll is small and steady all year. The second roll is larger and is strongest in Summer and Fall, a little weaker in Spring and only half as strong in Winter. Checking the Bus Stop spots in the warm seasons is the best digging plan. Taking the Hoe to the Forge in the Volcano Dungeon for the Archaeologist enchantment doubles each spot's artifact chance. A Treasure Totem used at the Bus Stop spawns a ring of fresh spots that draw from the same list.
Pepper Rexes are the most reliable way to get one. These monsters live in the Skull Cavern in the Calico Desert. Prehistoric Floors are where they gather, while ordinary floors seldom hold any. Each one has a high chance to drop a Prehistoric Vertebra, and the same high chance for a Prehistoric Rib or a Prehistoric Tibia. Because the rib drops just as often, a single Pepper Rex hunt can finish Sloth Skeleton M.
On Ginger Island, the Bone Nodes at the Dig Site have a small chance to hold a vertebra when broken with a Pickaxe. After its first pat each day, a pet dog at maximum friendship sometimes leaves something behind. The chance is one in five each day, and the Prehistoric Vertebra is one of the rare gifts in that pool.
Museum
Gunther looks after the Museum & Library in Pelican Town, where each artifact can be donated once, the vertebra among them. Donating the first Prehistoric Vertebra adds it to the artifact collection and raises the donation count toward Gunther's milestone rewards.
Sloth Skeleton M needs the Prehistoric Vertebra and the Prehistoric Rib. As soon as the second of the pair is donated, Gunther gives the piece to the farmer as furniture for the farmhouse. The skull, the scapula and the Skeletal Hand belong to Sloth Skeleton L. The Prehistoric Tibia and the Skeletal Tail make up Sloth Skeleton R.
During Gunther's Fragments of the Past special order, a hundred bone items must be gathered within a week. The Prehistoric Vertebra is one of the bones that counts. Only finds made after accepting the order are included. Success pays 3,500g, and the recipe for the Bone Mill arrives in the mail.
Prices
The Prehistoric Vertebra sells for the same price as most of the prehistoric bones, and for twice as much as a Trilobite. A read copy of the Treasure Appraisal Guide, one of the power books, triples artifact prices, so spare vertebrae earn more.
A Bone Mill offers another use for spares. Loading one vertebra into the mill gives a random batch of Quality Fertilizer, Speed-Gro, Deluxe Speed-Gro or Tree Fertilizer. Each batch has a small chance to come out doubled. Vertebrae from a Pepper Rex hunt can keep the farm supplied with fertiliser.
Gifts
Penny and the Dwarf like the Prehistoric Vertebra, as they like every artifact. A liked gift raises friendship with both.
Jas, Leo and Vincent count the Prehistoric Vertebra as a disliked gift. Krobus, Sandy and the Wizard share that view, and so do the marriage candidates Abigail, Alex, Elliott, Emily, Haley, Harvey, Leah, Maru, Sam, Sebastian and Shane. The same goes for the shop owners Clint, Gus, Marnie, Pierre, Robin and Willy, and for the older residents Caroline, Demetrius, Evelyn, George, Jodi, Kent, Lewis, Linus and Pam. Each of those gifts lowers friendship.
Notes
Putting Cloth in the feed and a Prehistoric Vertebra on the spool of the Sewing Machine makes the Skeleton Shirt. With a dyeable piece of clothing in the feed instead, the vertebra works as a white dye.
The Prehistoric Rib, the Prehistoric Scapula, the Skeletal Hand and the Skeletal Tail make the same Skeleton Shirt. Any spare bone from the sloth set can therefore cover the shirt.
All Artifacts
Every entry in this group, with its key details.
| Name | Image | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Amphibian Fossil | 
|
150g |
| Anchor | 
|
100g |
| Ancient Doll | 
|
60g |
| Ancient Drum | 
|
100g |
| Ancient Seed | 
|
5g |
| Ancient Sword | 
|
100g |
| Arrowhead | 
|
40g |
| Bone Flute | 
|
100g |
| Chewing Stick | 
|
50g |
| Chicken Statue | 
|
50g |
| Chipped Amphora | 
|
40g |
| Dried Starfish | 
|
40g |
| Dwarf Gadget | 
|
200g |
| Dwarf Scroll I | 
|
1g |
| Dwarf Scroll II | 
|
1g |
| Dwarf Scroll III | 
|
1g |
| Dwarf Scroll IV | 
|
1g |
| Dwarvish Helm | 
|
100g |
| Elvish Jewelry | 
|
200g |
| Glass Shards | 
|
20g |
| Golden Mask | 
|
500g |
| Golden Relic | 
|
250g |
| Nautilus Fossil | 
|
80g |
| Ornamental Fan | 
|
300g |
| Palm Fossil | 
|
100g |
| Prehistoric Handaxe | 
|
50g |
| Prehistoric Rib | 
|
100g |
| Prehistoric Scapula | 
|
100g |
| Prehistoric Skull | 
|
100g |
| Prehistoric Tibia | 
|
100g |
| Prehistoric Tool | 
|
50g |
| Prehistoric Vertebra | 
|
100g |
| Rare Disc | 
|
300g |
| Rusty Cog | 
|
25g |
| Rusty Spoon | 
|
25g |
| Rusty Spur | 
|
25g |
| Skeletal Hand | 
|
100g |
| Skeletal Tail | 
|
100g |
| Strange Doll (green) | 
|
1000g |
| Strange Doll (yellow) | 
|
1000g |
| Trilobite | 
|
50g |