Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Penny of Aethelred II
Anglo-Saxon silver penny of King Aethelred II showing his diademed bust facing left and a cross with pellets and ornament on the reverse.
Medieval Coins
Penny of Alfred the Great
Hand-struck silver penny of Alfred the Great of Wessex, showing a right-facing royal bust and a cross-based reverse with a moneyer's inscription.
Medieval Coins
Antoninianus of Laelianus
Rare billon antoninianus of the short-lived Gallic usurper Laelianus, showing his radiate-crowned bust and a Roman deity or personified virtue.
Ancient Coins
British Bank Token
Copper token of the late George III period bearing the king's left-facing bust and a quartered royal-arms reverse, dated 1819.
British Isles
Yuan Shikai Dollar
A silver one-yuan dollar of the early Chinese Republic bearing the left-facing bust of Yuan Shikai, nicknamed the "Fatman Dollar" by collectors.
Circulation
Rijksdaalder van Leicester
A large silver Dutch rijksdaalder of the Leicester type, with a helmeted armored bust and ruff on the obverse and a compartmented heraldic shield on the reverse.
Early Modern
Prinsendaalder (Rijksdaalder)
A large silver rijksdaalder of the Dutch Republic showing an armored bust with sword, popularly named the Prinsendaalder after the Prince of Orange.
Early Modern
Australian Penny
Large bronze pre-decimal Australian penny with a leaping kangaroo, AUSTRALIA and PENNY on one side and a monarch's bust on the other.
World Coins
Antoninianus of Aurelian
Late Roman billon coin of Emperor Aurelian, showing his radiate-crowned bust and a standing deity or personification on the reverse.
Ancient Coins
Solidus of Constantine II
Late Roman gold solidus of Constantine II, showing his ornately crowned bust and a seated figural reverse type.
Ancient Coins
Liberty Head Nickel
U.S. five-cent piece struck 1883–1912, showing a left-facing Liberty head ringed by stars, with a Roman-numeral "V" reverse; the 1913 issue is a legendary rarity.
Nickel Five Cent
Solidus of Galla Placidia
A late Roman gold solidus struck in the name of Galla Placidia, empress and regent, showing her diademed bust and a Victory holding a long cross.
Ancient
Miliarense of Leo I
Eastern Roman silver miliarensis of Leo I (AD 457-474), showing his diademed bust and a standing military figure with spear and shield.
Ancient
Speciedaler
Large early-modern Norwegian silver crown of the Dano-Norwegian kingdom, showing a crowned royal bust and the Norwegian lion shield, dated 1628.
Early Modern
Maundy Money Penny
Tiny silver penny given as royal alms; this James II example (1687) shows a crowned bust and a crowned Roman numeral I reverse.
Maundy
Charles II Shilling
A machine-struck Stuart silver shilling of Charles II, with his laureate bust facing right and a reverse of crowned shields bearing the royal arms.
Milled
Guinea of George II
A milled gold guinea of Great Britain struck during the reign of George II, with a left-facing royal bust and a crowned heraldic shield reverse.
Milled
Tealby Penny
Silver penny of Henry II, the Tealby or Cross-and-Crosslets type, with a crowned royal bust and a voided cross bearing small crosslets in its angles.
Medieval Coins
Edward I Groat
Rare early English silver fourpence of Edward I, showing his crowned facing-profile bust and a long-cross reverse with pellets in the quarters.
Medieval Coins
Sestertius of Maximinus Thrax
Large Roman bronze sestertius of Maximinus Thrax (235-238 AD), the first soldier-emperor, with a laureate bust facing right.
Ancient
Denarius of Elagabalus
Silver denarius of the young Severan emperor Elagabalus (218–222 AD), with his laureate bust and a standing personified deity on the reverse.
Ancient
English Sixpence
A hammered silver sixpence of James I, showing his crowned profile bust and a quartered royal shield with a long cross on the reverse.
Hammered
Mary I Groat
Hammered silver fourpence of Mary I (1553-1558), with her crowned bust left and the royal arms over a cross on the reverse.
Hammered
Tetradrachm of Ptolemy IV
Silver tetradrachm of Ptolemy IV Philopator, 221-204 BC, with the jugate busts of Sarapis and Isis on the obverse and an eagle on a thunderbolt on the reverse.
Ancient