Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Portuguese Real
Portugal's centuries-old pre-decimal currency unit, used from the medieval era until the 1911 introduction of the escudo, also struck for Brazil and other colonies.
European
Prussian Thaler
The Prussian Thaler was the leading silver coin of the powerful Kingdom of Prussia, circulating from the mid-18th century until German unification replaced it with the mark in 1871–1873.
European
Shilling
One of Britain's oldest circulating silver denominations, nicknamed the 'bob,' equal to twelve pence and struck for over four centuries before decimalisation.
British
Ottoman Silver Akce
A tiny silver coin that served as the basic everyday currency unit of the Ottoman Empire for centuries, gradually shrinking in size and silver content as inflation took hold.
World
Lewis and Clark Gold Dollar Commemorative
A commemorative gold dollar honoring explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, struck in 1904 and 1905 for the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland, Oregon.
Commemorative
Australian Holey Dollar and Dump
In 1813, colonial authorities in New South Wales punched the centers out of Spanish silver dollars to create two coins from one, easing a severe coin shortage while preventing the silver from leaving the colony.
Africa & Oceania
British Sovereign (modern proof)
Contemporary proof-quality gold sovereign struck by the Royal Mint, continuing Benedetto Pistrucci's St George and the dragon reverse design used since the early 19th century.
British
Korean Sang Pyong Tong Bo (Mun cash coin)
Traditional Korean cast cash coin with a square center hole, issued for over two centuries during the Joseon Dynasty and carrying the inscription 'Everlasting Circulating Treasure.'
Asian
Spanish Colonial Cob (Macuquina)
Crude, irregularly shaped hand-struck coins produced at Spanish colonial mints in the Americas for over two centuries, forming the basis of the famous 'pieces of eight' that circulated worldwide.
Latin American
Papal States Scudo
The principal silver coin of the Papal States, bearing the portrait or arms of the reigning pope alongside religious imagery, struck for centuries until the Papal territories' loss of independence.
European
Chinese Wu Zhu Cash
One of history's longest-running coin types, cast continuously for over seven centuries across multiple Chinese dynasties after its introduction under Emperor Wu of Han.
Ancient
Sassanian Silver Drachm
The standard silver coin of the Sasanian Persian Empire, featuring an elaborately crowned king's portrait and a Zoroastrian fire altar with attendants, struck for over four centuries.
Ancient
Mughal Silver Rupee (Akbar)
A silver rupee struck under Emperor Akbar, who standardized the denomination's weight and calligraphic design, establishing a coin type that shaped Indian currency for centuries.
Asian
Third Farthing
An extremely small denomination worth one-twelfth of a penny, struck mainly to serve the currency needs of the British colony of Malta across the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
British
Liberty Head Half Eagle ($5)
A widely produced 19th-century gold five-dollar coin bearing Christian Gobrecht's Coronet Head design, struck across nearly every major American branch mint of the era.
United States
Persian Sassanid Silver Drachm
The standard silver coin of the Sasanian Persian Empire, showing an elaborately crowned royal bust and a Zoroastrian fire altar with attendants, struck for over four centuries.
Ancient
Tibetan Silver Tangka
The traditional silver coin denomination of Tibet, issued in many distinct types over roughly three centuries, from early Nepalese-struck coinage to native Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan issues.
Asian
Dutch Ducat
A small, nearly pure gold coin showing an armored knight, minted for centuries by the Dutch provinces and later the Kingdom of the Netherlands as a trusted international trade coin.
European
Gallienus Antoninianus
Radiate coin of Gallienus, who ruled through the depths of the Crisis of the Third Century and is especially known for a colorful late-reign series of animal and mythological reverse types.
Ancient
Indian Gold Mohur
The traditional high-value gold coin of the Indian subcontinent, struck for centuries by Mughal emperors, later by the British East India Company, British India, and various princely states.
Asian
Double Sovereign
A British gold coin worth two pounds, twice the value of the standard sovereign, struck intermittently since the nineteenth century for commemorative and bullion purposes.
British
Abbasid Gold Dinar
The standard gold coin of the Abbasid Caliphate centered on Baghdad, inscribed entirely in Arabic script and struck for roughly five centuries across a vast Islamic empire.
World
Half Crown Gold
A small gold coin worth half a gold crown, struck from the reign of Henry VIII through the English Civil War, distinct from the far more familiar silver half crown that circulated for centuries afterward.
British
Netherlands 2½ Gulden
The largest regularly circulating silver coin of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, popularly nicknamed "rijksdaalder," featuring the reigning monarch's portrait across more than a century of Dutch coinage.
European