Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
US Olympic Commemorative Dollar (1983)
The first coin in a two-year US commemorative program supporting the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, the 1983 silver dollar features a discus-thrower design and marked a revival of American commemorative coinage.
Commemorative
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
Greek Drachma
The modern national currency of Greece from shortly after independence until the adoption of the euro, reviving the name of the ancient Greek unit and featuring classical and historical imagery.
European
Louisiana Purchase Gold Dollar Commemorative
A 1903 commemorative gold dollar issued for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, struck in two varieties featuring the portraits of Thomas Jefferson and William McKinley.
Commemorative
1974 Aluminum Cent
An extremely rare experimental pattern struck in aluminum as a potential replacement for the copper cent amid rising metal costs, almost none of which were legally released to the public.
Errors & Varieties
Aurelian Antoninianus
Radiate coin of Aurelian, the soldier-emperor who reunited the fractured Roman Empire and enacted a major coinage reform introducing standardized silver content marked with XXI or KA.
Ancient
1873-CC Seated Liberty Quarter (No Arrows)
One of the great rarities of the Seated Liberty quarter series, this tiny Carson City issue predates the mid-1873 arrows-at-date modification and survives in only a handful of known examples.
United States
Vermont Copper
Copper coinage struck under authority of the independent Vermont Republic in the 1780s, featuring an early landscape design and later a Britannia-style type.
United States
Persian Gold Toman (Qajar)
The principal gold coin of Qajar Persia, valued at ten silver kran, struck under a succession of shahs from the late 18th century until the dynasty's end in 1925.
Asian
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
1900 Lafayette Dollar
The first United States commemorative silver dollar, struck in 1900 to help fund a statue of the Marquis de Lafayette presented to France at the Paris Exposition.
Commemorative
Venezuela 5 Bolivares 'Fuerte' Silver
A high-purity Venezuelan silver crown struck in 1911–1912, nicknamed the 'Fuerte' (strong) issue for restoring .900 fineness after decades of debased coinage.
Latin American
Vietnamese Tu Duc Thong Bao (cash coin)
A cast bronze or zinc cash coin issued under Emperor Tự Đức of Vietnam's Nguyễn Dynasty, round with a square center hole in the traditional East Asian style.
Asian
Kushan Gold Dinar
Gold coin of the Kushan Empire modeled on the Roman aureus standard, notable for depicting a rich blend of Greek, Iranian, Indian, and Buddhist deities on its reverse.
Ancient
Chinese Pei Yang (Peiyang) Arsenal Dragon Dollar
Late Qing dynasty silver dollar struck at the Pei Yang Arsenal in Tientsin, prized by collectors for its dragon design and the rarity of certain dated varieties.
Asian
Spanish-Philippine 8 Reales Counterstamped Dollar
Spanish colonial 8 reales silver dollar officially countermarked for circulation in the Philippines, a hybrid of Spanish American and Philippine monetary history.
Asian
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
Victorian Silver Five Cents
The small sterling silver five-cent coin struck under Queen Victoria for the Province of Canada and later the Dominion of Canada, issued intermittently from 1858 to 1901.
Canadian
1951 Nickel Commemorative Five Cents
A special Canadian five-cent coin marking the 200th anniversary of the isolation of the element nickel, struck in the metal itself to honor Canada's role as a leading nickel producer.
Commemorative
Licinius Follis
Bronze follis of Licinius, the last rival emperor to challenge Constantine the Great before his defeat and the reunification of the Roman Empire under Constantinian rule in 324 AD.
Ancient
Hadrian Travel Series Denarius
A celebrated series of silver denarii issued late in Hadrian's reign, personifying the many provinces he famously toured throughout the Roman Empire.
Ancient
Matte Proof Lincoln Cent
A special proof finish used on Lincoln cents from 1909 to 1916, featuring a fine, sandy, non-reflective surface instead of the mirror-like brilliance of earlier proof coins.
United States
Lincoln Memorial Cent
The long-running Lincoln cent reverse featuring the Lincoln Memorial, used for half a century and one of the most commonly encountered coins in American pockets and collections.
United States
1796 Half Cent
One of the great rarities of American copper coinage, the 1796 half cent was struck in the Liberty Cap design in a very limited quantity, with 'With Pole' and rarer 'No Pole' varieties known.
United States