Archaeologists dig into the past. Gently separating their historical finds from the overlying rock, they happily return to a lab and begin their studies. Once completed, their wonderful relic goes on display so others can gaze in awe at a link into our past.
Displaying fossils requires care. A structure must keep the normal weathering; the sun, rain and wind, away. But maintaining this shelter and its contrived air requires energy.
With plentiful energy, we happily provide for aged bones that survived tens and hundreds of millions of years. Should energy become scarce will we continue to protect these bones? If not, without the protecting over burden of rock, the bones will quickly disintegrate and future generations will lose all knowledge of what preceded them.