Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Penny of Cnut
Anglo-Saxon silver penny of King Cnut (Canute), showing a diademed bust facing left with a cross-and-pellets reverse, struck c.1024-1030.
Medieval Coins
Shah Jahan Half Rupee
Silver half rupee of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, dated AH 1055, carrying Persian-script inscriptions and ornamental borders instead of any portrait.
Mughal India
Standing Liberty Quarter Centennial Gold
A 2016 U.S. quarter-dollar struck in 1/4 oz of .9999 fine gold, reviving Hermon MacNeil's Standing Liberty design for its 100th anniversary.
Quarter
Mughal Rupee (Akbar)
A hand-struck Mughal silver rupee of Emperor Akbar dated AH 1003 (AD 1594), covered on both faces with flowing Persian calligraphy and ornamental borders.
Historic
Penny of William I
Hammered silver penny of William the Conqueror, the example showing a profile portrait of the king and a decorated cross reverse, struck circa 1075.
Medieval Coins
Gold Dinar of Malik Shah I
A hand-struck Seljuk gold dinar naming Malik Shah I (r. 1072–1092), covered in Arabic inscriptions with the ruler's titles and genealogy and an ornamental cartouche.
Islamic (Medieval)
Missouri Centennial Half Dollar
A 1921 U.S. silver commemorative half dollar marking 100 years of Missouri statehood, with a coonskin-capped frontiersman facing left and a frontier-scene reverse.
Classic Commemorative
5 Francs Semeuse
France's silver 5 francs of the New Franc era: Roty's striding Semeuse (Sower) on the obverse, the value in an olive spray on the reverse.
Circulation
50 Öre (Silver)
A small Swedish silver 50 ore of the Oscar II era, dated 1898, with the value and date in a laurel wreath on one side and the crowned Swedish arms on the other.
Modern
France 50 Cent Euro
France's gold-coloured 50 euro cent coin, showing the striding Sower (Marianne) among the EU stars on one side and the value 50 on the other.
Circulation
5 Francs Ceres
France's large silver 5 francs bearing the wreathed head of Cérès, goddess of the harvest, with the value framed by laurel on the reverse.
Circulation
British West Africa 2 Shillings
A colonial copper-nickel two-shilling piece of British West Africa, showing King George VI and a palm-tree reverse.
World
Sestertius of Nero (Port of Ostia)
A large brass sestertius of the emperor Nero (54–68 AD) showing his portrait on one side and a bird's-eye view of the harbour at Ostia on the other.
Ancient
Matapan (Serbian imitation)
A medieval Serbian coin modeled on the Venetian matapan (grosso), showing standing figures on the obverse and a cross on the reverse.
Medieval
5 Escudos
Portugal's copper-nickel 5 Escudos, showing a caravel sailing ship on the obverse and the national shield with the value 5$00 on the reverse.
Modern
20 Para
A small base-metal coin of socialist Yugoslavia, showing the value 20 with the date 1974 on one side and the six-flame Yugoslav state emblem on the other.
Modern
12 Skilling
An early-modern Danish 12 skilling dated 1721, showing a crowned shield with a lion on one face and ornamental legend and value on the other.
Early Modern
Kenya 5 Shillings
A modern bimetallic Kenyan coin pairing a President's portrait with the national coat of arms and the bold value 5 shillings.
World
Hessen-Homburg Kreuzer
A small silver 1 Kreuzer of the Landgraviate of Hessen-Homburg, with a crowned arms shield and a dated 1 KREUZER value in a laurel wreath.
German States
German 5 Reichsmark (Hindenburg)
German silver 5 Reichsmark of the Third Reich, pairing a portrait of Paul von Hindenburg with an eagle-and-swastika reverse; dated 1936.
Circulation
Trinidad and Tobago 25 Cents
A copper-nickel 25-cent coin of Trinidad and Tobago: a leafy national-flower plant design on one face and the value TWENTY FIVE CENTS on the other.
Circulation
50 Centimes Semeuse
A small silver French 50 centimes with Roty's striding Semeuse (sower) on the obverse and the value within the national motto on the reverse.
Circulation
Barbados 1 Cent
A modern copper-colored Barbados one cent: the national coat of arms on the obverse and the value on the reverse, the smallest coin of the Barbadian dollar.
Circulation
New Zealand Penny
New Zealand's large bronze pre-decimal penny, with George VI on the obverse and a tui bird perched among fern fronds on the reverse.
New Zealand