What is the ruling on someone who finds money in the street? Is he allowed to take it?

The rulings on lost property (Luqata) can be summarized into three categories:

1. What people of average concern would not bother with: Such as a whip or a loaf of bread. The finder owns it without needing to announce it.

2. What is safe from small predators: Such as camels, horses, and birds. It is forbidden to pick it up; it should be left until its owner finds it.

3. All other types of property (apart from the two previous cases): Edible animals (sheep, chicken): The finder must do what is most beneficial for its owner: either eat it and pay its value, or sell it and keep its price, or keep it and spend on it, with the right to claim the expenses back from the owner. Perishable items (watermelon, fruit): The finder does what is most beneficial: eats it and pays its value, or sells it and keeps its price. All other types of property (money, utensils): It must be kept as a trust and announced for a full year in public gatherings.

The finder must know the descriptions of the lost property (its container, its binding) and announce it daily during the first week, and then according to custom. If the owner does not appear after a year of announcement, the finder owns it, but must return it to its owner whenever he comes and describes it.