Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
1914-D Lincoln Wheat Cent
A famous key-date Lincoln cent struck at the Denver Mint in 1914 in a comparatively low quantity, making it one of the most sought-after dates in the series.
United States
Lincoln Shield Cent
The current Lincoln cent reverse, introduced in 2010, depicts a Union shield replacing the earlier Lincoln Memorial design as the fourth reverse in the cent's history.
United States
1856 Flying Eagle Cent
An extremely rare pattern-like small cent struck to convince Congress to approve a new, smaller cent design, and one of the most desired key dates in U.S. coinage.
United States
Liberty Cap Large Cent
An early United States copper cent showing Liberty with a pole and pileus (liberty cap) over her shoulder, the third cent design used in the Mint's first years.
United States
Kushan Gold Dinar of Kanishka
A gold dinar of the great Kushan emperor Kanishka I, famous for its rich mix of Greek, Iranian, Indian, and Buddhist deities depicted on the reverse.
Ancient
Constantius II Centenionalis
A bronze centenionalis of Constantius II featuring the dramatic 'Fallen Horseman' reverse, one of the most famous designs of the Late Roman Empire.
Ancient
1917 Type 1 Standing Liberty Quarter
The original 1916-1917 Standing Liberty quarter design showing Liberty with an exposed right breast, before the design was modified later in 1917 for modesty.
United States
1875-S Twenty-Cent Piece
The most commonly encountered date in the short-lived US twenty-cent piece series, struck in large numbers at San Francisco in the coin's debut year.
United States
French 100 Francs Silver
France's pre-euro 100 Franc denomination included both a long-running silver Panthéon coin for collectors and numerous limited commemorative silver issues honoring people, events, and anniversaries.
European
Swiss 5 Francs Shooting Thaler
A series of commemorative Swiss silver crowns struck to mark the national Federal Shooting Festival, celebrating Switzerland's civic militia tradition through distinctive cantonal designs.
European
Spanish 8 Reales Portrait Dollar
The globally trusted "Spanish dollar" bearing a king's portrait, minted across Spain's vast colonial empire and so widely circulated it directly inspired the U.S. dollar sign and denomination.
European
Austrian Corpus Christi Thaler
A devotional silver thaler struck by Austrian ecclesiastical authorities to mark the feast of Corpus Christi, blending religious procession imagery with the standard large-thaler format of the era.
European
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
Dutch Silver Ducat
A historic Dutch trade silver coin first struck in 1659, depicting a standing knight, that has been minted continuously for centuries and remains a popular silver bullion and collector piece today.
European
Norwegian Krone
The krone became Norway's national currency in 1875 upon joining the Scandinavian Monetary Union, and it has remained Norway's currency ever since, featuring the reigning monarch's portrait through the decades.
European
2000-P Sacagawea Cheerios Dollar
A famous modern rarity: early-production 2000-P Sacagawea dollars included in Cheerios cereal boxes as a promotion, some showing enhanced eagle tail feather detail not found on later coins.
Errors & Varieties
Alexander the Great Tetradrachm
The widely circulated silver coin of Alexander the Great, showing Herakles wearing a lion skin on the obverse and an enthroned Zeus on the reverse, struck across his empire and for generations after his death.
Ancient
Laurel
A gold twenty-shilling coin issued from 1619, named for its laureate royal portrait styled after Roman emperors, replacing the earlier Unite as James I's principal gold denomination.
British
Maundy Threepence
The third denomination of the Royal Maundy set, a small silver threepence given out in the monarch's annual pre-Easter alms ceremony, distinct from Britain's separate everyday circulating threepence.
British
Probus Antoninianus
Radiate coin of Probus, a capable soldier-emperor who defended the frontiers against Germanic incursions and issued coinage noted for elaborate consular and military portrait styles.
Ancient
US Morgan Dollar
Classic American silver dollar struck from 1878 to 1921, named for designer George T. Morgan and known for its detailed Liberty head and eagle reverse.
United States
New Zealand Mint Silver Kiwi
A popular silver bullion coin from the New Zealand Mint depicting the flightless kiwi bird, with a design refreshed most years since its debut.
Bullion
American Gold Buffalo
The first 24-karat gold coin struck by the U.S. Mint, adapting James Earle Fraser's classic Buffalo Nickel design for a modern bullion product.
Bullion
Australian Lunar Series Silver
Perth Mint's silver bullion series depicting the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac in rotating annual designs, running since 1996 across three design series.
Bullion