Brush in Minecraft 1.20 update: Everything you need to know

Minecraft 1.20 may not have arrived yet, but that doesn't mean players aren't enjoying its various features. Thanks to Java Edition snapshots and Bedrock Edition previews, fans can experience content in the Trails & Tales update before it releases. One of the most anticipated inclusions is the arrival of archeology, which had been delayed from the 1.17-1.18 Caves & Cliffs update.

By using a handy little brush, players can interact with certain blocks known as suspicious sand/gravel and receive ancient items from them. This includes the likes of pottery shards (or sherds, as a recent Minecraft update named them) as well as the eggs of the new sniffer mob.

On the subject of the brush as an item itself, there are a few things players should know.

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Here's what you need to know about the brush in the Minecraft 1.20 update

As previously mentioned, Minecraft players won't get far in the 1.20 update's archeology feature without the aid of a brush. Without one, you won't be able to brush suspicious sand and gravel blocks, and therefore won't receive any ancient items as loot drops. Since suspicious sand/gravel blocks are also gravity-influenced and break when they fall, you have to be careful with them before brushing them. One badly-broken block can lead to the suspicious sand and gravel falling and breaking as well.

Fortunately, crafting a brush is incredibly easy in Minecraft 1.20. All you need is a stick, a copper ingot, and a feather. After opening up the crafting table interface and placing the stick in the bottom-center slot, you can stack the copper ingot into the middle slot and then top it with a feather in the top-center slot to complete the brush's crafting recipe. The item has a durability of 64, which admittedly isn't great, so it may not be a bad idea to craft multiple brushes if you're heading out on an archeology trip.

Once you have a brush in Minecraft, you'll want to seek out suspicious sand and gravel blocks. These blocks look like ordinary sand and gravel but have a slightly altered texture that features more markings on their surface. It may be difficult to differentiate them from ordinary blocks, so you will need to examine them closely. Furthermore, suspicious sand/gravel can only be found in certain locations by default.

Where to find Suspicious Sand/Gravel in Minecraft 1.20

• Suspicious Sand - Desert wells, desert pyramids, warm ocean ruins, and trail ruins.
• Suspicious Gravel - Ocean ruins and trail ruins.

Once you have found a suspicious block, you can equip the brush and right-click (or press the Use Item button on your controller) to begin the brushing process. As long as the mouse or controller button is held down, your character will continue the brushing animation. Be sure to keep the brush aimed at the suspicious block, as wanton brushing will deplete the brush's durability. After a short amount of time, the loot items held within the suspicious block should pop out. These items can then be collected.

As a tool, brushes can also be enchanted in Minecraft 1.20. As of the most recent snapshots and previews, brushes can be enchanted with the Unbreaking, Mending, and Curse of Vanishing enchantments. Curse of Vanishing isn't great to add to a brush, but Unbreaking and Mending can go a long way in ensuring that your brush stays in top shape. However, if all else fails, you can combine two damaged brushes in a crafting table interface to create a repaired brush. The two durabilities of the damaged brushes will be combined, and an extra 5% of the max durability will also be repaired.