Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Netherlands Lion Daalder (Leeuwendaalder)
A large silver trade coin of the Dutch provinces showing a knight and a rampant lion, widely circulated in colonial North America and the Ottoman world as the prototype 'lion dollar.'
European
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
Ceylon (Sri Lanka) EIC Rixdollar
A colonial currency unit continued by the British East India Company administration in Ceylon, inherited from earlier Dutch VOC rule and featuring an elephant design.
Asian
Spanish Colonial 8 Reales Ferdinand VII
A large silver 8 reales coin struck across Spain's American colonies bearing the portrait of King Ferdinand VII, widely circulated internationally and historically linked to the origin of the US dollar sign.
World
Massachusetts Cent (1787-1788)
State-issued copper coinage struck by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1787 and 1788, notable as the first official U.S. coinage to use the denomination 'cent'.
United States
Canadian Loonie
Canada's eleven-sided one dollar coin, introduced in 1987 with a common loon on the reverse, giving rise to its popular nickname.
Canadian
1794 Flowing Hair Cent
An early United States large copper cent from the first years of the Mint, associated with the Flowing Hair Liberty portrait used on the nation's earliest coinage.
United States
Bolivia 8 Reales (Potosi Mint)
A major Spanish colonial and early Bolivian silver dollar struck at the legendary Potosí mint, fed by the immense silver deposits of the Cerro Rico mountain.
Latin American
Mexican Un Peso Silver (Cap and Rays)
A late-nineteenth-century Mexican silver peso showing a radiant Liberty cap, struck at Mexico City and several regional mints during the Porfirio Díaz era.
Latin American
Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle
Widely regarded as one of the most beautiful U.S. coins ever produced, designed by sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens at the urging of President Theodore Roosevelt.
United States
Turban Head Eagle
The first U.S. $10 gold coin, struck 1795-1804 and nicknamed 'Turban Head' for Liberty's cap-like headdress; the earliest examples pair her portrait with a small, spread-winged eagle.
United States
1921-D Mercury Dime
A key-date silver dime from a post-WWI recession year when Denver struck only a small number of Mercury dimes, making it a cornerstone of the series.
United States
Spanish Colonial Cob 8 Reales (Macuquina)
A crudely hand-struck Spanish colonial silver coin, cut from irregular silver bars and stamped with a cross and shield, famed worldwide as the original 'piece of eight'.
Latin American
Ryal
A large Scottish silver coin issued under Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, nicknamed the 'sword dollar' for the crowned sword on its reverse.
British
Ethiopian Birr (Menelik II)
Silver birr introduced by Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia, modeled on the weight and fineness of the Maria Theresa thaler, featuring his crowned bust and the Lion of Judah.
Africa & Oceania
Colombian Peso Silver
Colombia's traditional silver dollar-sized coin, struck across different eras of the country's political evolution, from Nueva Granada through the modern Republic of Colombia.
Latin American
Maria Theresa Thaler
An Austrian silver trade coin dated 1780 that has been restruck continuously for over two centuries, remaining a trusted currency across parts of Africa and the Middle East long after its original issue.
European
French Indochina Piastre de Commerce
A large silver trade dollar issued by colonial French Indochina, weighted to match the Mexican and Spanish trade dollars already circulating throughout Southeast Asian and Chinese commerce.
Asian
Canadian Toonie
Canada's bimetallic two dollar coin, introduced in 1996 with a polar bear reverse, whose nickname blends "two" with "loonie."
Canadian
Kellogg & Co. Gold Piece
Private gold coinage struck by the San Francisco firm Kellogg & Co. during the California Gold Rush, including the famous octagonal fifty-dollar 'slug' of 1855, filling a shortage of circulating coin.
United States
Spanish 2 Reales Pillar
The Pillar 2 Reales was a fractional Spanish colonial silver coin featuring the famous Pillars of Hercules design, struck at mints across Spanish America and widely used in international trade.
Latin American
1796 Draped Bust Quarter
The very first quarter dollar struck by the United States Mint, a one-year type coin with a tiny mintage that is treasured by collectors of early American silver.
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
Peru 8 Reales (Lima Mint)
The flagship silver dollar-size coin of colonial and early republican Peru, struck at the historic Lima mint from cob and pillar types through crowned-shield busts.
Latin American