Lost items are kept for only a limited time.
Items are retained for approximately 30 days, at which point they are disposed of.
Thank you first and foremost for visiting the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex. If you have lost something that is important and treasured to you, this guide will assist us in trying to help.
The Smithsonian Lost and Found works diligently to identify, match, and helps to reunite lost property items as much as possible.
In order to match lost property to the owner, we need specific information such as date the item was lost, the museums visited, description, make, model, etc. Please click this “Lost Property Report Form” link to enter this information.
Every day, hundreds of items are lost by the visiting public in one of our 19 museums and research facilities. If you believe you have lost an item in one of our museums, please fill out the form below with as much detail as possible in the Description field, but please DO NOT include sensitive data such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, driver's license numbers etc., unless otherwise requested.
We will do our very best to locate your lost item, and will reach out to you if we find it. Due to the volume of lost items, we are only able to retain lost items for approximately 30 days. We dispose of any unclaimed items after 30 days.