Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Japanese Oban
A large, oval, hand-hammered gold plate coin of feudal Japan, used mainly as a gift, reward, or ceremonial item rather than everyday currency, among the largest gold coins ever issued.
Asian
Netherlands 5 Gulden Gold
A gold 5 gulden coin struck intermittently by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, first under King William I in the 1820s and later as a rare 1912 commemorative under Queen Wilhelmina.
European
German Empire 20 Mark Gold (Wilhelm II)
The standard gold coin of the German Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm II, struck at multiple state mints and widely collected for its imperial portrait and eagle reverse.
European
Gupta Empire Gold Dinar
Richly detailed gold coins of India's classical Gupta Empire, depicting kings as archers, horsemen, or lyrists, and often paired with a goddess on the reverse.
Ancient
Panama-Pacific $50 Gold (Round)
A massive round commemorative gold piece struck for the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition, one of the rarest and most valuable U.S. commemorative coins ever issued.
Commemorative
1965-1970 Kennedy Half Dollar (40% Silver)
Kennedy half dollars struck with a reduced 40% silver clad composition after the Coinage Act of 1965, bridging the gap between full silver coinage and today's copper-nickel clad coins.
United States
2011 Gettysburg America the Beautiful Quarter
An America the Beautiful Quarters release honoring Gettysburg National Military Park in Pennsylvania, site of the pivotal 1863 Civil War battle.
United States
1916-D Mercury Dime
The key date of the Mercury Dime series, the 1916-D was struck at Denver in a very low quantity, making genuine examples scarce and highly sought after by collectors.
United States
1937-D Three-Legged Buffalo Nickel
One of the most famous U.S. mint errors, this Denver-struck Buffalo Nickel variety shows the bison missing its front leg after a Mint worker over-polished a damaged die.
Errors & Varieties
Roosevelt Dime
Issued since 1946 in honor of Franklin D. Roosevelt, this dime is struck in 90% silver through 1964 and copper-nickel clad afterward, and remains in circulation today.
United States
Lincoln Wheat Cent
The first widely circulated U.S. coin to feature a real historical figure, Abraham Lincoln, with two stylized wheat stalks on the reverse; one of the most collected coins in America.
United States
Standing Liberty Quarter
An early 20th-century silver quarter featuring a striding figure of Liberty, prized for its artistic Type I 'bare breast' design and later modified Type II version.
United States
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
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
Farthing
The smallest-value British bronze coin, worth a quarter of a penny, fondly remembered for its charming wren reverse design used from 1937 until its withdrawal.
British
Nerva Denarius
Silver denarius of the elderly senator Nerva, first of Rome's "Five Good Emperors," whose brief reign is best remembered for adopting Trajan as his successor.
Ancient
Maximinus Thrax Denarius
Silver denarius of Maximinus Thrax, the first Roman emperor risen from the common soldiery rather than the senatorial class, ruling amid the onset of the Crisis of the Third Century.
Ancient
Velia (Elea) Lion and Nymph Nomos
A classic South Italian silver nomos pairing a finely helmeted head of Athena with a striding or attacking lion, from the philosophically famous city of Velia.
Ancient
Messana Hare and Biga Tetradrachm
Silver tetradrachm of Messana in Sicily, famous for its obverse mule-cart (biga) driven by a charioteer crowned by Nike, paired with a running hare on the reverse.
Ancient
Katane (Catania) Apollo Tetradrachm
Silver tetradrachm of Katane in Sicily, admired for its finely engraved Apollo portrait and dynamic quadriga scene, sometimes signed by celebrated die engravers.
Ancient
1913 Barber Half Dollar
A recognized key date of the Barber half dollar series, with a Philadelphia mintage far lower than most other years, making it prized by series collectors.
United States
Indian Head Eagle ($10)
A striking early 20th-century gold eagle designed by Augustus Saint-Gaudens as part of President Theodore Roosevelt's push to beautify American coinage.
United States
2004-D Wisconsin Extra Leaf High Quarter
The 'high leaf' variant of the famous Wisconsin quarter extra-leaf variety, showing the anomalous extra corn leaf pointing upward and outward rather than low near the cheese wheel.
Errors & Varieties
1927-S Standing Liberty Quarter
A key date of the Standing Liberty quarter series, struck in relatively low numbers at San Francisco and notoriously difficult to find with a fully struck head.
United States