Contact
****************************************************************
Please read the options below before submitting your question.
****************************************************************
1. WANT TO ASK A SCIENTIST A QUESTION?
Please choose "Ask a question" from the drop-down menu under Category choice below. We will review all questions and answer as many as we can. Due to a continuing high volume of questions, it may take us a few weeks to provide an answer.
2. WANT TO DOWNLOAD 3D DATA FROM ONE OF OUR 3D COLLECTION OBJECTS?
Please choose "3D Download" from the drop-down menu under Category choice below. Note that 3D models of all specimens in our 3D Collection that are owned and curated by the Smithsonian Institution (i.e., Primates, Other Animals) are available for download for non-commercial use only. Please choose "Ask a question" from the drop-down menu under Category choice below and paste "3D model download access" in the subject line of your message. We will respond to your request within a few weeks. Please note that the 3D models of Fossil Hominins and Artifacts are not available for download. These are copies of specimens and objects that are owned and curated by other museums/institutions; thus, we do not distribute these data.
3. WANT TO USE ONE OF OUR IMAGES FOR COMMERCIAL PURPOSES?
Please choose "Photo Request" from the drop-down menu under Category choice below and cut and past the URL of the image for reference in your message so we know which image you are interested in using. It make take us one to two weeks to respond to your request.
4. WANT US TO LOOK AT PHOTOS OF AND/OR EVALUATE YOUR OBJECT?
Staff of the Smithsonian Institution, as a matter of legal and ethical policy, do not authenticate or perform appraisals of any artifacts for the public. If this is the nature of your question, you may wish to contact the Appraisers Association of America to find a professional appraiser. The Smithsonian's Museum Conservation Institute has an excellent website with more information and resources relating to appraisals: http://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/appraisal.html. The National Museum of the American Indian also has helpful appraisal resources (pdf) on their website: http://nmai.si.edu/sites/1/files/pdf/collections/appraisal-resources.pdf. If your object is archaeological (i.e., prehistoric or excavated), you may want to contact the state archaeologist of the state where it was found; other resources listed on the Society for American Archaeology’s web page may also be of use: http://www.saa.org/publicftp/public/resources/societies.html.
5. WANT TO CITE OUR WEBSITE IN A PAPER YOU ARE WRITING?
for help citing an electronic reference, we recommend you follow the sample formats provided at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/10/. Our website pages have multiple authors and are being updated on a regular basis.