Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Ptolemy I Soter Tetradrachm
A silver tetradrachm bearing the realistic portrait of Ptolemy I Soter, founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt, whose eagle-on-thunderbolt reverse became the enduring badge of Ptolemaic coinage.
Ancient
Kai Yuan Tong Bao Cash
A landmark Tang dynasty cash coin whose four-character reign-title inscription became the standard template for Chinese, and much of East Asian, coinage for the next 1,300 years.
Ancient
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
Type 3 Indian Princess Gold Dollar
The final and longest-running design of the U.S. gold dollar, featuring a larger, better-struck Native American princess portrait than its short-lived Type 2 predecessor.
United States
1918/7-D Buffalo Nickel Overdate
A famous overdate error on the Buffalo Nickel where a leftover 1917 working die was hand-repunched with an 1918 date, leaving traces of the underlying 7 visible beneath the 8.
Errors & Varieties
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
Italian 5 Lire
A large silver crown of the newly unified Kingdom of Italy, bearing the portrait of the reigning king and marking Italy's emergence as a single national currency after centuries of regional coinages.
European
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 Rijksdaalder
A historic large silver crown-sized coin of the Low Countries, the rijksdaalder became a trusted trade coin across Europe for centuries and lent its name to the modern Dutch 2½-guilder piece.
European
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
Gold Sovereign
Iconic British gold pound coin, revived in 1817 with Benedict Pistrucci's celebrated St George and the Dragon design, struck for centuries in London and branch mints worldwide.
British
Nepal Silver Mohar
A traditional silver denomination issued by the Malla city-kingdoms and later the unifying Shah dynasty of Nepal, typically bearing Devanagari script rather than portraits.
Asian
Swiss 20 Francs Gold Vreneli
Switzerland's beloved gold 20-franc coin, nicknamed "Vreneli" after the young woman on its obverse, prized worldwide as an approachable and historically rich gold bullion and collector coin.
European
1883 With Cents Liberty Head Nickel
The corrected version of the 1883 Liberty Head Nickel with CENTS added below the wreath, issued later the same year to stop widespread gold-plating fraud tied to the earlier No Cents design.
United States
Franklin Half Dollar
A 90% silver half dollar (1948-1963) depicting Benjamin Franklin on the obverse and the Liberty Bell on the reverse, designed by John R. Sinnock.
United States
German Bavaria Thaler
A large silver crown-sized coin issued by the Bavarian state, one of many German territorial thalers struck before German unification.
European
Galerius Follis
Reform-era bronze follis of Galerius, Caesar and later Augustus of the eastern Tetrarchy, remembered for early persecution of Christians and his later Edict of Toleration issued just before his death.
Ancient
1804 Draped Bust Eagle
The final date of the original ten-dollar gold eagle series before a 33-year production halt, later followed by a small number of 1834 diplomatic-gift restrikes made using a similarly dated die.
United States
Australian Gold Kangaroo
Australia's flagship gold bullion coin, first struck as the Gold Nugget before adopting a yearly-changing kangaroo design in 1989.
Bullion
1866 Shield Nickel With Rays
The first-year Shield Nickel design featuring thirteen rays between the reverse stars, marking the debut of the United States' first copper-nickel five-cent coin.
United States
Panticapaeum Gold Stater (Pan/Griffin)
Gold stater of Panticapaeum, capital of the Bosporan Kingdom on the Crimean peninsula, showing the bearded head of Pan and a griffin standing on a grain ear.
Ancient
1793 Liberty Cap Half Cent
The first-year half cent, struck in 1793 with a distinctive 'Head Facing Left' Liberty Cap design used only that single year before the design was revised.
United States
Spanish 8 Reales (Piece of Eight)
The legendary 'piece of eight,' Spain's silver dollar-sized coin that became the world's first truly global currency and the direct ancestor of the U.S. dollar.
World
Siam Tin Pot Duang / Porcelain Gambling Token
Two related forms of traditional Siamese small change: tin versions of the bent bullet-shaped pot duang currency, and porcelain gambling tokens used informally as local currency in Chinese-run gaming houses.
Asian