Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Italian 100 Lire Gold
The largest gold denomination of the Kingdom of Italy's Latin Monetary Union coinage, struck under Vittorio Emanuele II and Umberto I in relatively limited numbers.
European
Byzantine Electrum Aspron Trachy (Scyphate)
A distinctive cup-shaped Byzantine coin struck in electrum after Alexios I Komnenos's currency reform, featuring religious imagery and a concave scyphate flan.
Ancient
Australian Lunar Series (Perth Mint)
Modern Australian bullion and collector coin series from the Perth Mint featuring a different Chinese zodiac animal each year, popular worldwide with precious metal collectors.
Bullion
1921 Mercury Dime
A key date of the Mercury dime series, struck in unusually low numbers amid a post-World War I economic slowdown that reduced coinage demand nationwide.
United States
Argentina 8 Reales
Silver 8 reales struck after Argentina's 1810 independence movement, replacing the Spanish king's portrait with the revolutionary Sun of May and clasped hands design.
Latin American
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
Kwangtung Province Dragon Dollar
One of the earliest Chinese machine-struck silver dollars, issued by Kwangtung Province and featuring a coiled dragon reverse that became the template for Chinese provincial dollar coinage.
Asian
Mexican 8 Reales Cap and Rays
The classic silver dollar of independent Mexico, showing a radiant Phrygian liberty cap over mountains, widely trusted and traded across the Americas and Asia for most of the 19th century.
Latin American
Korean Gwangmu Half Won (1905)
Silver half-won coin from the short-lived Korean Empire's Gwangmu currency reform, struck shortly before Korea fell under increasing Japanese control.
Asian
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
French Napoleon 20 Francs Gold
France's standard 19th-century gold coin, first struck under Napoleon I and continued under later rulers and the Republic, giving rise to the enduring nickname "Napoleon" for any 20-franc gold coin.
European
2008 Beijing Olympics Commemorative Coins
China issued a large multi-year coin program ahead of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, spanning circulating 1 Yuan pieces and extensive gold and silver proof series depicting Olympic sports and Beijing landmarks.
Commemorative
Half Angel (Angelet)
A small English gold coin worth half the value of the Angel, sharing its famous design of the Archangel Michael slaying a dragon, issued across several reigns from Edward IV to James I.
British
Yuan Shih-kai Dollar ("Fat Man Dollar")
A widely circulated Republic of China silver dollar bearing the portrait of President Yuan Shikai, nicknamed the "Fat Man Dollar" for his rounded features and became China's standard silver coin for years.
Asian
Netherlands East Indies Gulden (Wilhelmina)
Dutch colonial silver gulden struck for the Netherlands East Indies bearing the portrait of Queen Wilhelmina, the standard coin of Dutch-ruled Indonesia.
Asian
Italian Scudo (Papal States)
A large silver coin issued by the Papal States under successive popes, blending religious imagery with the temporal authority of the papacy.
European
Austrian Thaler (Joseph II)
A silver thaler bearing the portrait of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, struck in the late 18th century and, like the more famous Maria Theresa thaler, later restruck for use in Levant and African trade.
European
Julian II Bull Bronze
A large bronze maiorina of Julian the Apostate with a bull reverse, associated with his brief attempt to revive traditional pagan worship in Rome.
Ancient
Indian Head Eagle ($10)
A striking early 20th-century gold eagle designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens as part of President Theodore Roosevelt's push to beautify American coinage.
United States
Iranian Rial
Iran's official currency unit since 1932, replacing the earlier qiran/kran, struck across the Pahlavi monarchy and the Islamic Republic in changing metals and designs.
Asian
Isle of Man Gold Angel
A long-running gold bullion coin from the Isle of Man featuring the Archangel Michael slaying a dragon, struck by the private Pobjoy Mint since 1984.
Bullion
Indian Head Half Eagle ($5)
A uniquely designed gold five-dollar coin featuring an incuse (recessed) design by Bela Lyon Pratt, the only U.S. circulating coin ever struck this way.
United States
1864 L Indian Head Cent
A famous variety of the 1864 bronze Indian Head cent bearing a tiny L on Liberty's ribbon for designer James Longacre, one of the most recognized key varieties in the series.
United States
1909-S Indian Head Cent
The final and lowest-mintage Indian Head cent, struck at the San Francisco Mint in the series' last year before the Lincoln cent debuted.
United States