Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Abbasid Copper Fals
A hand-struck Abbasid copper fals dated AH 219 (834–835 CE), covered entirely in linear Arabic inscriptions with no portrait or figural imagery.
Islamic (Medieval)
Spanish Colonial 8 Reales (Milled Bust)
The milled-bust Spanish colonial 8 reales—the classic “piece of eight,” a large silver coin bearing the Spanish king's portrait and royal arms.
Colonial
Australian Florin
Australia's pre-decimal silver two-shilling coin, showing the Commonwealth coat of arms with kangaroo and emu supporters and the reigning monarch.
World Coins
2 Lire
Silver 2 Lire of the Papal States struck under Pope Pius IX, part of the Italian lira system adopted by Rome in the 1860s.
Modern
Somaliland 1 Shilling
An early circulation coin of the self-declared Republic of Somaliland, its reverse showing a dove above the country's name and the value.
World
Macao 20 Patacas
A silver 20 patacas of Portuguese-administered Macau: the Portuguese coat of arms on one face and a harbor scene with a Chinese junk on the other.
Circulation
Philip and Mary Shilling
Hammered silver shilling of Philip II of Spain and Mary I (1554-1558), showing their paired royal busts and a crowned quartered shield of arms.
Hammered
1 Lira
A tiny, lightweight Vatican City lira of the 1950s under Pius XII, with the tiara-and-keys arms on the obverse and a standing figure of Charity on the reverse.
Modern
10 Pahlavi Gold Coin
A large gold coin of Imperial Iran valued at ten Pahlavi, showing Mohammad Reza Shah on the obverse and the crowned Lion and Sun on the reverse.
Persia / Iran
2 Francs Semeuse
A French silver two francs of the Third Republic showing Roty's striding Semeuse (Sower) on the obverse and the value with the national motto on the reverse.
Circulation
2 Kroner
A Danish silver 2 Kroner dated 1875, the first year of the krone, showing the crowned Danish coat of arms and the denomination 2 KRONER.
Modern
2 Escudos
A gold 2 Escudos of Habsburg Spain, the classic 'doubloon,' struck with a crowned coat of arms of castles and lions on both faces.
Early Modern
Spanish Colonial Half Real
The smallest milled silver coin of Spain's American empire: a tiny 1/2 real with a royal bust and the crowned arms between pillars.
Colonial
Spanish Colonial 1 Real (Bourbon)
A small silver coin of Spain's American colonies from the early Bourbon era, showing a cross with ornaments on one side and the crowned royal arms on the other.
Colonial
Banda Singh Bahadur Sikh Rupee
A hand-struck silver rupee of the early Sikh Khalsa, issued in the name of the Sikh Gurus during Banda Singh Bahadur's short-lived sovereignty, dated Khalsa Era Year 2.
Asian
Gotha 3 Kreuzer
A small silver 3 Kreuzer of the German state of Gotha, dated 1830, with an ornate armorial obverse and a laurel-wreath value reverse.
German States
2 Francs Ceres
A French silver two francs of the early Third Republic showing the head of Cérès with a star on the obverse and the value within a wreath on the reverse.
Circulation
Spade Guinea Token
A base-metal imitation of the George III spade guinea, made as a gaming counter or advertising token, with a male profile obverse and a spade-shaped shield reverse.
Token
2 Litai
A white base-metal 2 litai of newly independent Lithuania, dated 1991, showing the value in a radiating sunburst on one side and the Vytis mounted knight on the other.
Modern
8 Escudos (Carolus)
The largest Spanish gold coin of the age, the 8 Escudos or doubloon, struck under the Habsburg Carolus rulers with the crowned quartered royal arms.
Early Modern
Philippines 25 Centavos
Silvery base-metal 25 centavos of the young Republic of the Philippines, dated 1958: a standing figure with a liberty torch and the Republic's sunburst coat of arms.
Southeast Asia
Tibetan Tangka
A silver tangka, the standard coin of old Tibet, its faces filled with Tibetan script and Buddhist ornamental motifs, struck from the late 18th into the 19th century.
Himalayan
Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach 5 Mark Commemorative
An 1908 German Empire 5 Mark silver commemorative of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach marking the University of Jena's jubilee, with the founder's capped portrait.
Commemorative
Roman Quinarius
A small Roman silver quinarius, half the value of a denarius, here with a helmeted head of Roma and a prancing horse on the reverse.
Ancient