Note: In various prints of the Player's Handbook, the Duration is said to be 8 hrs. However Errata corrects this to "one round per level". .
Player's Handbook Version
This spell helps locate a known or familiar object. The priest casts the spell, slowly turns, and will sense when he is facing in the direction of the object to be located, provided the object is within range—for example, 90 yards for 3rd-level priests, 100 yards for 4th, 110 yards for 5th, etc. The spell locates such objects as apparel, jewelry, furniture, tools, weapons, or even a ladder or stairway. Once the caster has fixed in his mind the items sought, the spell locates only that item. Attempting to find a specific item, such as a kingdom's crown, requires an accurate mental image. If the image is not close enough to the actual item, the spell does not work; in short, desired but unique objects cannot be located by this spell unless they are known by the caster. The spell is blocked by lead.
The casting requires the use of a piece of lodestone.
The reversal, obscure object, hides an object from location by spell, crystal ball, or similar means for eight hours. The caster must touch the object being concealed.
Neither application of the spell affects living creatures.
Priest's Spell Compendium Version
This spell helps locate a known or familiar object. The priest casts the spell, slowly turns, and senses when he or she is facing in the direction of the object to be located, provided the object is within range – for example, 90 yards for 3rd level priests, 100 yards for 4th, 110 yards for 5th, and so on. The spell locates such objects as apparel, jewelry, furniture, tools, weapons, or even a ladder or stairway. Once the caster has fixed in his or her mind the item sought, the spell locates only that item. Attempting to locate a specific item, such as a kingdom's crown, requires an accurate mental image. If the image is not close enough to the actual item, the spell does not work; in short, desired but unique objects cannot be located by this spell unless they are known by the caster. The spell is blocked by lead.
The casting requires the use of a piece of loadstone.
The reverse, obscure object, hides an object from location by spell, crystal ball, or similar means for eight hours. The caster must touch the object being concealed. Neither application of the spell affects living creatures.
Notes: Common for clerics (PHB). Errata for the duration is incorporated here.
Sage Advice
Dragon Magazine #243
Q. Back in issue 237, you wrote that a wall of force spell blocks divination spells that don’t render things visible. Does this mean that a wall of force blocks spells such as locate object? What about detect magic, which makes magical auras visible?
A. Actually, locate object falls into the same category as effects as clairvoyance and clairaudience; it bypasses the wall entirely. Detect magic allows the caster to detect magical auras. In many campaigns, the spell makes auras visible, but that’s window dressing, not part of the spell description. A detect magic spell’s area of effect will not extend through a wall of force any more than it can extend through a metal wall (though the spell will reveal the wall’s magical aura). On the other hand, spells such as detect invisibility and true seeing make things visible so long as they are within range and in the caster’s line of sight. Technically, these two spells also have areas of effect, but a wall of force is transparent to them.