Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Somalia Elephant Silver Coin
A popular annually-redesigned bullion coin issued in the name of Somalia depicting an African elephant, part of a broader African Wildlife series struck by a German mint.
Africa & Oceania
1938-D/S Buffalo Nickel Overmintmark
The famous final-year Buffalo nickel variety showing a D mintmark punched over a leftover S, created when Denver reused a die originally prepared for San Francisco.
Errors & Varieties
Colombian 8 Reales (Nueva Granada)
The classic Spanish colonial "piece of eight" struck at the mints of Bogotá and Popayán, continuing in modified form after Colombian independence before decimal reform.
Latin American
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
Tibetan Silver Srang (Ganden Tangka type)
A native Tibetan silver coin issued by the Ganden Phodrang government in Lhasa, featuring the Tibetan snow lion and traditional Tibetan script rather than Chinese imperial designs.
Asian
Massachusetts Willow Tree Shilling
The rarest of Massachusetts Bay's tree-series colonial shillings, struck in secret defiance of English law and all frozen with the date 1652 regardless of actual striking year.
United States
Japanese Meiji Gold 20 Yen
The largest and highest-denomination gold coin of Meiji-era Japan, featuring an imperial dragon design, struck to underpin Japan's modern gold-backed currency system.
Asian
Italian 100 Lire Gold
The largest gold denomination of the Kingdom of Italy's Latin Monetary Union coinage, struck under Vittorio Emanuele II and Umberto I in relatively limited numbers.
European
1967 Centennial Silver Dollar (Goose)
A one-year commemorative Canadian silver dollar struck for the 1967 Centennial of Confederation, its reverse depicting a Canada goose in flight, designed by Alex Colville.
Canadian
Victoria Ten Cents (dime)
Canada's early silver ten-cent coin issued under Queen Victoria, struck intermittently from the introduction of decimal currency in 1858 through the end of her reign in 1901.
Canadian
Sybaris Bull Stater
An archaic incuse-fabric silver stater from the legendarily wealthy city of Sybaris, showing a bull looking back over its shoulder, struck before the city's destruction in 510 BC.
Ancient
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
1972 Eisenhower Dollar (Type 2)
A scarce reverse variety of the 1972 Eisenhower dollar, distinguished by a more detailed, higher-relief rendering of the Earth behind the moon-landing eagle, and prized by variety collectors.
Errors & Varieties
Type 3 Indian Princess Gold Dollar
The final and longest-running design of the U.S. gold dollar, featuring a larger, better-struck Native American princess portrait than its short-lived Type 2 predecessor.
United States
1913 Barber Quarter
A lower-mintage date in the Barber Quarter series designed by Charles E. Barber, notable among collectors for the relatively small number struck at the Philadelphia Mint that year.
United States
1795 Liberty Cap Large Cent
An early United States large cent from 1795 featuring the Liberty Cap design, struck as America's young Mint worked out production and metal-supply challenges.
United States
Australian Gold Nugget (Kangaroo)
Australia's premier gold bullion coin, originally depicting real gold nuggets before switching to an annually changing kangaroo design, struck in .9999 fine gold.
Bullion
Vienna Philharmonic
Austria's celebrated bullion coin family built around a shared musical design honoring the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, issued in gold, silver, and platinum.
Bullion
Angel
An English gold coin depicting the Archangel Michael slaying a dragon, introduced in 1465 and famously used as a ceremonial 'touch piece' in royal healing rituals.
British
Half Crown
A long-lived British coin worth one-eighth of a pound, struck from the Tudor era until decimalisation in 1970, valued today mainly for its portraits and design variety.
British
Florin (Two Shillings)
A British silver coin worth two shillings, notable for the controversial 1849 'Godless Florin' that omitted the customary religious motto, and for foreshadowing decimal coinage.
British
Armorican Billon Stater
A debased silver-alloy stater struck by Celtic tribes of Armorica (modern Brittany), showing wildly abstracted horse and head designs derived from Greek prototypes.
Ancient
Testoon
The earliest English coin to carry a realistic royal portrait, introduced under Henry VII around 1487 as the forerunner of the shilling, later continued and debased under Henry VIII.
British
Maundy Twopence
A small silver twopence struck each year as part of the Royal Maundy set, historically descended from the medieval silver half groat and still distributed in the annual royal alms ceremony.
British