Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
1861 Confederate Half Dollar
An extraordinarily rare Civil War-era coin struck briefly at the Confederate-controlled New Orleans mint, using a genuine CSA reverse die paired with an existing US half dollar obverse.
United States
1878 Shield Nickel (Proof Only)
Another proof-only rarity in the Shield Nickel series, struck exclusively for collectors with no business-strike coinage issued for circulation that year.
United States
1877 Shield Nickel (Proof Only)
A major Shield Nickel rarity struck exclusively as proof coinage for collectors, with no business strikes produced for circulation that year.
United States
1804 Draped Bust Silver Dollar
Extraordinarily rare U.S. dollar known as "The King of American Coins," actually struck decades after its 1804 date for diplomatic gift sets and later collectors, with only 15 known examples.
United States
Italian 20 Lire Gold (Vittorio Emanuele)
The Kingdom of Italy's standard 20 lire gold coin, issued under kings including Vittorio Emanuele II, sharing the Latin Monetary Union's gold specifications with coins like the French Napoleon.
European
1984 Doubled Ear Lincoln Cent
A popular doubled die variety showing distinct doubling on Lincoln's ear on the obverse portrait, one of the more visually distinctive and widely collected Lincoln cent varieties.
Errors & Varieties
1971 British Columbia Dollar
A commemorative Canadian dollar marking the centennial of British Columbia joining Canadian Confederation in 1871, issued in both nickel circulation and silver collector versions.
Canadian
1972 Eisenhower Dollar (Type 2)
A scarce reverse variety of the 1972 Eisenhower dollar, distinguished by a more detailed, higher-relief rendering of the Earth behind the moon-landing eagle, and prized by variety collectors.
Errors & Varieties
1921 Peace Dollar (High Relief)
The debut issue of the Peace dollar, struck in dramatic high relief that proved difficult to mint, commemorating peace after World War I.
United States
1999 New Jersey State Quarter
One of the original five 1999 State Quarters, honoring New Jersey with a rendition of Washington Crossing the Delaware, launching the wildly popular 50 State Quarters Program.
United States
Yuan Shikai 'Fatman' Dollar (1914)
A widely produced Republic of China silver dollar bearing the portrait of President Yuan Shikai, nicknamed the fat man dollar for his portly likeness, one of the most common historic Chinese silver coins.
Asian
1922 Canadian Nickel Five Cents
The first year Canada's five-cent coin was struck in solid nickel rather than silver, introducing the beaver reverse design that would define the coin for decades.
Canadian
1921 Standing Liberty Quarter
A low-mintage key date of the Standing Liberty quarter series struck only at Philadelphia, valued for its scarcity across all grades.
United States
1938-D/S Buffalo Nickel Overmintmark
The famous final-year Buffalo nickel variety showing a D mintmark punched over a leftover S, created when Denver reused a die originally prepared for San Francisco.
Errors & Varieties
Korean 5 Yang Silver Dollar (1892)
Korea's first Western-style, dollar-sized silver coin, struck in 1892 with a coiled dragon design as part of King Gojong's currency modernization.
Asian
Spanish 100 Reales Gold (Isabel II)
A mid-19th-century Spanish gold coin struck under Queen Isabel II, part of Spain's pre-peseta reales-based monetary system.
European
1967 Bobcat Centennial Quarter
A one-year-only Canadian quarter struck for the 1967 Centennial of Confederation, featuring a bobcat on the reverse instead of the usual caribou.
Canadian
1795 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar
One of the earliest United States silver dollars, sharing the Flowing Hair design introduced in 1794 and struck in two collectible leaf-count varieties.
United States
1883 No Cents Liberty Head Nickel
The first-year Liberty Head Nickel design that omitted the word CENTS from the reverse, later infamous as the 'Racketeer Nickel' after being gold-plated and passed off as a five-dollar coin.
United States
1858 Victoria Five Cents (silver)
The first Canadian five-cent coin, a tiny sterling silver piece struck for the Province of Canada in 1858 when decimal currency was introduced to replace older colonial money.
Canadian
1919-D Standing Liberty Quarter
A semi-key Denver-minted Standing Liberty quarter, scarcer than common dates of the series and notably difficult to find with a fully struck head.
United States
1969-S Doubled Die Obverse Lincoln Cent
A famous and dramatic doubled die obverse Lincoln cent from the San Francisco Mint, showing strong, easily visible doubling and ranking among the most valuable Lincoln cent doubled die varieties.
Errors & Varieties
New Zealand Waitangi Crown (1935)
Rare 1935 New Zealand silver crown depicting the meeting between Governor Hobson and Maori chiefs, one of the most valuable coins in British Commonwealth crown collecting.
Africa & Oceania
1888/7 Indian Head Cent Overdate
A scarce overdate variety of the Indian Head cent in which traces of an underlying 7 are visible beneath the final 8 in the 1888 date, from a working die repunched with a new year.
Errors & Varieties