A photolog of forgotten items and the deeper meaning within them
Jackie Husted (Shizuoka)
Consideration for others is woven deeply into the fabric of Japan’s society. It’s everywhere—in the language, on quiet trains, in queues and crowds. If you pay attention, you can see it nearly every time you step outside, in the form of small lost objects.
Go for a walk in any neighborhood in Japan and you’ll start to notice a pattern: small items in conspicuous places. Forgotten things, or wasuremono.
You’ll see them thoughtfully hung up on a tree or placed delicately on a post, rescued from the pavement where they fell. Keychains, gloves, charms, and any number of other small treasures, patiently waiting and hoping to be noticed by their original owners.
It’s a reflection of an important part of the culture here. In Japan, lost property is taken seriously. If something is found, it must be taken care of. For the smallest personal effects, this might just mean moving it carefully to the side of a walkway. Otherwise, these items are turned in to local police or station staff.
Koban and train stations have entire departments dedicated to reuniting people with things. This extends even to cash. In 2024, in Tokyo alone, a reported 4.49 billion yen in lost cash was turned in.
When asked why lost items are treated with such respect, Japanese people often seem confused by the question itself. It is a concept so ingrained from such an early age that many can’t consider an alternative.
After some prompting, a few Japanese coworkers I spoke to thought this cultural pattern might be attributed to a strong desire to be kind to others, bolstered by an undercurrent of societal pressure to do the right thing. One coworker brought up something called ichinichi ichizen—a well-known and widely practiced proverb meaning “one good deed a day.”
So much good samaritanship has resulted in a surplus of unclaimed items in lost and found. These can be costly for police and train stations to manage for long periods of time. As a solution, some areas have started up lost item markets, such as the Railway Forgotten Market in Osaka, where long-term unclaimed items go on sale at a deep discount. These can be great places to score high-quality umbrellas, among other things, for cheap.
Ever-present and often overlooked, wasuremono are a gentle, constant reminder of the consideration and respect so ingrained in Japanese culture. Each one paints a warm picture of a thoughtful stranger making sure even the smallest of trinkets isn’t neglected, hoping it is someday reunited with the owner that is missing it.
Next time you go for a walk, keep an eye out. What small treasures will you notice?
Author Bio:
Jackie Husted is a JET ALT based in Shizuoka. She loves cafes, birds, and going off on tangents just to see how far they can go.