If you have found something that you think could be archaeological object, please contact the National Museum of Ireland.
It is part of the work of the Irish Antiquities Division in the National Museum to receive and respond to reports of discoveries of artefacts. Follow the guidelines below and get in touch.
Reporting your find
The law requires people to promptly report all archaeological objects they find to the National Museum of Ireland. For more details, refer to Chapter 11 of the Historic and Archaeological Heritage and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023
The best way to contact us is via email. If you can, please send an email to the Irish Antiquities Division Duty Officer with a photograph of your object and provide as much detail as possible including:
- your contact phone number
- your name, address and contact number
- when and where you found the object
- the size of the object (or a scale in the photograph)
- a short description of the object, including what it is made from (if you can tell) and any distinguishing features
Once we have received your message, we will contact you to discuss it further.
For Art and Industry, Natural History and Irish Folklife use Donate an Artefact
What happens to my find?
All archaeological object which are found without a known owner are property of the State. It is the role of the National Museum of Ireland to care for this material and ensure its long term survival. You can find out more about our role here:
https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2023/act/26/section/131/enacted/en/html#sec131
And here https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1997/act/11/enacted/en/html
Some finds may require conservation, and will be sent to our Conservation Department. If your find is acquired by the Museum, we will allocate a unique registration number to it and we will create an associated file which will contain any research we have done on the artefact. This information will be available for researchers to the collection.
Explore more?
If you are interested in knowing more about the monuments people built in the past consult the National Monuments Service (NMS) website. NMS protects and conserves Ireland’s archaeological monuments.
For Advice on the use of detection devices to search for archaeological objects please visit: https://www.archaeology.ie/advice-and-support/apply-for-a-licence-consent/detection-device-consent/