For efficient service, please read through the following list and contact the appropriate office directly, or review the frequently asked questions at the bottom of the page.
Group Sales (IMAX, Dining, Butterfly Pavilion)
- Web: Group Sales
- Phone: 866.868.7774
Magazine Subscriptions
Air & Space Magazine
- Web: Air & Space Magazine
- Email: air&space@emailcustomerservice.com
- Phone: 800.513.3081
- Other inquiries: info@si.edu
Smithsonian Magazine
- Web: Change or update your membership information.
- Email: Smithsonian@emailcustomerservice.com
- Phone: 800.766.2149
Membership Services
- National Associates
Email: smithsonian@emailcustomerservice.com
Phone: 800.766.2149 - Smithsonian Associates
Email: customerservice@smithsonianassociates.org
Phone: 202.633.3030 - Friends of the Smithsonian
Email: membership@si.edu
Phone: 800.931.3226 - African American History and Culture
Email: NMAAHCmember@si.edu
Phone: 800.209.9178 or 202.633.2766 - African Art Museum
Email: NMAfAMembership@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.4607 - National Air & Space Museum (DC and VA)
Email: NASMmembership@si.edu
Phone: 800.633.2600 - Smithsonian American Art Museum
Email: americanartdevelopment@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.8420 - National Museum of American History
Email: JohnsonSt@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.0398 - National Museum of American Indian
Email: nmai-info@si.edu
Phone: 800.242.6624 or 202.633.6984 - Cooper Hewitt National Museum of Design
Email: chmembership@si.edu
Phone: 212.849.8349 - Freer|Sackler
Email: FSFriends@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.0520 - Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
Email: HMSGdevelopment@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.2836 - National Zoo
Email: fonzmember@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.2922 - National Museum of Natural History
Email: nhadvancement@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.0821 - National Postal Museum
Email: NPMgiving@si.edu
Phone: 202.633.7900 - Renwick Gallery
Email: admin@jra.org
Phone: 301.907.3888
Lost and Found
Web: Lost and Found
To report a lost possession, click on the "Lost Property Report Form" inside the link above.
Office of Human Resources
- Web: Office of Human Resources
- Phone: 202.633.6370
Smithsonian Enterprises
Smithsonian Stores / Smithsonian Catalog
SmithsonianStore.com / Smithsonian Catalog
- Email: smithsonianstore@si.edu
- Phone: 800.322.0344
Museum Stores
Smithsonian Books and Scholarly Press
Smithsonian Books
- Web: www.smithsonianbooks.com
- Email: info@smithsonianbooks.com
- Phone Orders: 800.733.3000
Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press
- Web: scholarlypress.si.edu
- Email: scholarlypress@si.edu
DK Smithsonian- published by Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Inc. (not Smithsonian)
Smithsonian Travel (Journeys)
Smithsonian Journeys
- Web: www.smithsonianjourneys.org
- Email: smithsonianjourneys@si.edu
- Phone: 855.330.1542
- International callers: 989.393.3218
Smithsonian General Information
For visit-planning and Smithsonian-related inquiries not addressed above:
- Email: info@si.edu
- Inquiries about topics listed above sent to info@si.edu will be referred to contacts listed above for review and response.
- Phone: 202.633.1000 (recorded information/live voice)
- Address:
Smithsonian Information
PO Box 37012
SI Building, Room 153, MRC 010
Washington, D.C. 20013-7012 - Staff Mail:
Employee name
Smithsonian Institution
Building name, room number (if known)
PO Box 37012
Washington, DC 20013-7012
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my address or stop receiving mail?
The Smithsonian does not maintain a centralized mailing list; each membership program maintains its own membership database. Please contact the appropriate membership program:
- National Associates: smithsonian@customersvc.com or 800.766.2149
- Resident Associates: CustomerService@SmithsonianAssociates.org or 202.633.3030
- Friends of the Smithsonian: Membership@si.edu or 800.931.3226
- If you are a member of a different (e.g., museum-specific) membership program, please visit the Smithsonian Giving website for contact information.
I would like to donate an object to the Smithsonian Institution. What should I do?
The Smithsonian acquires thousands of objects and specimens each year for its collection holdings through donation, bequest, purchase, exchange, and field collecting. Each museum and curatorial department decides on a case-by-case basis which objects to add to its collections. Donations are accepted only when the item truly complements the collection. We also consider whether we can properly care for an intended donation, as our collections are held in trust for the American people.
In order to make such decisions, our curators will need a few images of the objects you wish to donate, along with as much background information as you have. Please submit your donation request with the images included as attachments in one single e-mail to info@si.edu. If you wish to sell your item to the Smithsonian, you must also include your asking price. Once you provide the images and information in a single e-mail, we will forward your offer to the appropriate staff for consideration. Museum staff will contact you directly if they are interested in your offer.
Under no circumstances should you send us your object without prior written curatorial approval.
Can the Smithsonian provide appraisals?
Smithsonian staff is unable to comment on (e.g., speculate on value, intended use, authenticity, age, or materials) or to do research on items outside our own collections. Smithsonian policy prevents us from recommending a specific appraiser or dealer. You can ascertain the current range of prices for items exchanged at sales and auctions by consulting the price guides available in bookstores, public libraries, or online. Also, dealers actively engaged in buying and selling antiques, professional appraisers attached to sales galleries, and official appraisers for local probate courts usually can give prevailing values. Information on providers of these services can be found in collectors' magazines, in the yellow pages of telephone directories, or in other sources available from the reference librarian in your area library. Also see general information on object appraisals.
How do I care for antiques and heirlooms?
Staff specialists at the Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute (MCI; previously Smithsonian Center for Materials Research and Education) are asked questions on a wide variety of subjects relative to caring for and preserving artifacts and heirlooms. Broad guidelines and strategies for artifact and collections care may be found on the MCI website below.
How can I find out if the Smithsonian holds a particular object in its collections and where it might be?
The Smithsonian holds nearly 154 million objects in its collections, distributed among its 19 museums, the National Zoo, libraries, research centers, and storage facilities. Many artifacts are donated to the Smithsonian by individuals, private collectors, and federal agencies; others come to the collections through field expeditions, bequests, exchanges with other museums and organizations, and purchases.
Only a small percentage of the Smithsonian’s vast holdings are on view. Many artifacts not on display are stored in collection study areas in the museums and are available to researchers by appointment. Air- and spacecraft are conserved and stored at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, part of the National Air and Space Museum, in Chantilly, Virginia. Other research collections are housed in Landover and Suitland, Maryland, facilities.
Most of our collections have been catalogued in our Collections database. If you don’t find the object you are interested in listed there, please send as much information about the object as you have to info@si.edu; such information as a complete description of the item, its history, how and when it came to the Smithsonian, who donated it, and the museum or facility to which it was donated can help us refer your inquiry to the appropriate collections staff.
Some museums and units may be contacted directly. To either conduct research or inquire about a collection, either send a detailed email or follow instructions at any of the following:
Anacostia Community Museum- ACMarchives@si.edu
Archives of American Art- https://www.aaa.si.edu/services/visit-research-center#washington-dc
Freer|Sackler- https://www.freersackler.si.edu/collections/appointment
Smithsonian Gardens- http://gardens.si.edu/collections-research
National Postal Museum- NPMobjectresearch@si.edu or;
https://postalmuseum.si.edu/research/appointments-to-research-objects.html
How can I use content from the Smithsonian and its websites?
For general information on using Smithsonian content, please visit our Terms of Use webpage. Each museum and office grants rights to reproduce objects and images in its collections. To determine which museum holds the object or image you are interested in, search our Collections database. For information on how to contact the appropriate office to request rights, please see our Rights, Restrictions, and Security Contacts webpage.
How do I rent space for a private event such as a wedding or birthday?
Many of the Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo are available as unique settings for special events. Organizations and individuals can rent Smithsonian spaces for their private event. To learn more about events at the different museums, spaces that are available for rent, capacities of spaces and contact information, please visit see Host an Event at the Smithsonian for information.