Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Quarter Guinea
A rarely issued small gold coin worth one-quarter of a guinea, struck only in 1718 under George I and again briefly in 1762 under George III.
British
1921 Fifty Cents (King of Canadian Coins)
Canada's most famous rarity, the 1921 fifty-cent piece survives in only a small number of known examples after most of its mintage was melted, earning it the nickname King of Canadian Coins.
Canadian
2000-P Sacagawea/Washington Quarter Mule
An extraordinarily rare mint error pairing the golden Sacagawea dollar obverse with a Washington quarter reverse die, one of the most famous modern mule errors in U.S. coinage.
Errors & Varieties
Sovereign (Ottawa Mint, C Mintmark)
British gold sovereigns struck at the Ottawa branch of the Royal Mint between 1908 and 1919, marked with a small "C," making Canada part of the empire's global sovereign network.
Canadian
English Crown
A large English silver coin worth five shillings, first struck under Henry VIII, that became one of Britain's most artistically celebrated denominations before decimalization.
British
Virginia Halfpenny
An official royal copper coinage struck in London specifically for the Colony of Virginia, showing King George III, whose distribution was disrupted by the approaching American Revolution.
United States
Panama-Pacific $50 Gold (Round)
A massive round commemorative gold piece struck for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition, one of the rarest and most valuable U.S. commemorative coins ever issued.
Commemorative
Australian Gold Sovereign (Sydney Mint)
Gold sovereign struck at the Sydney Mint, Australia's first branch mint, opened to coin gold from the New South Wales gold rushes into imperial currency.
Africa & Oceania
Higley Copper
A privately minted colonial Connecticut copper token, famous for its blunt 'VALUE ME AS YOU PLEASE' inscription after colonists balked at its initial overvalued threepence rating.
United States
Indian Gold Mohur
The traditional high-value gold coin of the Indian subcontinent, struck for centuries by Mughal emperors, later by the British East India Company, British India, and various princely states.
Asian
India Gold Pagoda (Madras Presidency)
Small gold coin traditionally used across South India, later adopted and standardized by the East India Company's Madras Presidency before being phased out for rupee-based currency.
Asian
Half Farthing
A tiny copper coin worth one-eighth of a penny, struck mainly for use in colonial Ceylon during the reigns of George IV, William IV, and Victoria.
British
Rosa Americana Coinage
A British-issued colonial coinage for America under a patent granted to William Wood, showing a rose and King George I, that was widely rejected by colonists for its poor metal and overvaluation.
United States
Peruvian Libra de Oro (Gold Pound)
Peru's gold pound, modeled on the British sovereign's weight and fineness, was struck intermittently to support Peru's participation in the international gold standard.
Latin American
Sixpence
A small British silver coin worth half a shilling, affectionately nicknamed the 'tanner,' beloved for its traditional role tucked into Christmas puddings.
British
Isabella Quarter
The only U.S. commemorative quarter dollar, struck for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and featuring Queen Isabella I of Spain, sponsor of Columbus's voyage.
Commemorative
Quarter Farthing
The smallest fractional denomination in British coinage, worth one-sixteenth of a penny, struck primarily for use in colonial Ceylon during Victoria's reign.
British
Third Farthing
An extremely small denomination worth one-twelfth of a penny, struck mainly to serve the currency needs of the British colony of Malta across the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
British
Farthing
The smallest-value British bronze coin, worth a quarter of a penny, fondly remembered for its charming wren reverse design used from 1937 until its withdrawal.
British
Halfpenny
A small British bronze coin worth half a penny, best known in its twentieth-century form featuring Sir Francis Drake's ship the Golden Hind on the reverse.
British
Penny
One of the oldest and most iconic British denominations, the pre-decimal penny is famous for its large bronze Britannia design and beloved key dates like the 1933 penny.
British
Wood's Hibernia Halfpenny
A British copper coinage patented by William Wood for Ireland, controversially rejected there but widely circulated instead in colonial America, where large surplus shipments ended up in everyday trade.
United States
Indian Princely State Silver Rupee (Hyderabad)
Silver rupee issued independently by the princely state of Hyderabad under the Nizam, notable for its distinct weight standard and Persian-Urdu inscriptions rather than British Indian designs.
Asian
Threepence
A small British coin worth three pence, issued first as a tiny silver piece and later as the distinctive 12-sided brass 'threepenny bit' beloved for its unusual shape.
British