Which 13th-century Franciscan saint is invoked for finding lost objects?

Which 13th-century Franciscan saint is invoked for finding lost objects? Anthony of Padua. Born Fernando Martins de Bulhões in Lisbon, Portugal, Anthony became an Augustinian priest before joining the newly established Franciscans. He was renowned as a preacher and teacher of theology and eventually worked in Italy, especially around Padua.

Anthony’s association with lost objects comes from devotional tradition. One story says that a novice who had stolen Anthony’s psalter returned it after Anthony prayed or intervened; the book was reportedly recovered. Whether treated as history or legend, the story helped establish Anthony as a saint to invoke when something has gone missing.

Anthony was also associated with lost people, lost spiritual goods, and, in Portugal, Spain, and Brazil, marriage and matchmaking. He died in 1231 and was canonized by Pope Gregory IX in 1232, an exceptionally rapid canonization. His feast day is June 13, and the Basilica of Saint Anthony in Padua is a major pilgrimage site.