ESO Excavation Guide explains how to uncover an antiquity after you’ve found its lead and finished the Scrying puzzle. Scrying narrows the search to a highlighted area on your map, but it doesn’t give you the treasure. Travel to that area, use the Antiquarian’s Eye to find the glowing dig mound, then interact with it to open the Excavation minigame.
In the excavation screen, you have a limited number of actions to locate and uncover the buried object. The Augur helps find it, while your digging tools remove the earth covering it. You can start with simple green antiquities as soon as you unlock the system, then move on to rarer treasures when your Scrying rank and Antiquarian Insight passive allow it.
ESO Excavation – How to unlock Excavation in ESO
Head to the Antiquarian Circle in Solitude, Western Skyrim, and complete the introductory Antiquities quest with Verita Numida. This introduces Scrying and Excavation together. Greymoor and Antiquities are scheduled to become part of the base game on October 19, 2026; until then you need Greymoor access. You may still need separate DLC access for particular dig zones after that date.
Excavation tools and when to use them
| Tool | When to use it |
|---|---|
| Augur | Survey separated tiles to narrow down where the buried object lies. |
| Hand Brush | Remove a small amount of soil with precision, especially near the treasure. |
| Trowel | Clear deeper soil at a chosen position after identifying a promising area. |
| Heavy Shovel | Clear a wider section when you have enough room and the tool is unlocked. |
Don’t start by removing soil from random tiles. Check several spots with the Augur first and use its readings to narrow your search. A stronger reading tells you which area deserves more attention. Dig there in layers rather than spending all your actions far from the relic.
ESO Excavation – How to excavate an antiquity step by step
- Open Journal → Antiquities and choose an available lead.
- Complete the Scrying puzzle, then travel to one of the highlighted areas on the map.
- Use Antiquarian’s Eye from Collections → Tools to find the glowing mound.
- Interact with the mound to begin Excavation.
- Survey widely separated tiles with the Augur to narrow down the object’s position.
- Clear soil with the Trowel or Heavy Shovel where it is safe, and use the Hand Brush when you get close to the relic.
- Uncover the main antiquity completely before running out of actions.
If you can see bonus treasures nearby, treat those as an extra. Your first priority is to finish uncovering the main antiquity. Bonus rewards aren’t worth abandoning a nearly completed excavation, especially on a harder lead that took time to obtain.
How to avoid running out of excavation actions
The best approach is to use early actions for information and later actions for digging. The Augur is especially useful before you’ve committed to any one section of the board. Once you have a likely position, remove soil where the relic actually is. Switch to precise brushing rather than using a broad tool immediately beside the object.
Excavation passives improve your available tools as the skill line levels. Spend points on those upgrades when you unlock them. More powerful tools can make difficult digs much easier, but even with better equipment, checking the board before clearing earth remains important.
Why a Mythic fragment isn’t counting
Getting the lead and completing its Scrying puzzle are only the first two stages. You must successfully excavate the fragment before it counts towards a Mythic item. Many Mythics require five different fragments, each with its own lead source, while other Antiquities rewards have different requirements. Use the Antiquities Journal to see what you’ve actually recovered.
You can obtain a high-rarity lead before you meet its Scrying requirement. If it’s locked, check your Scrying rank and the Antiquarian Insight passive; master-level gold leads generally require level 7 and Antiquarian Insight IV. Also check that your account has access to the excavation zone, which may differ from the zone where the lead dropped.
Excavation problems and fixes
If the Antiquarian’s Eye won’t point to anything, make sure you’ve completed the Scrying puzzle and entered a highlighted search area. If you can’t find the mound, move around obstacles and activate the Eye again. If the dig itself fails, return to the lead and try the excavation again, using the Augur to reduce wasted actions.
What to excavate next
Start with repeatable green leads and the blue leads they can award. This helps raise Scrying and Excavation together. Once you can tackle purple and gold leads, you can target rarer treasures or work through the separate fragments of a Mythic item. Check each fragment’s drop location before travelling; some lead sources and excavation sites are in different zones.
Related ESO Excavation Guides
Related Guides
Reference: Antiquities system and lead progression reference.
