Solution to CIA’s Kryptos Sculpture Is Found in Smithsonian Vault NYT | Top Stories By: John Schwartz 16 October 2025 at 20:38 Jim Sanborn is auctioning off the solution to Kryptos, the puzzle he sculpted for the intelligence agency’s headquarters. Two fans of the work then discovered the key. © Drew Angerer for The New York TimesThe solution to the final passage of the Kryptos artwork had been unsolved since its unveiling in 1990.