Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Denarius of Caracalla
A silver denarius of the Roman emperor Caracalla, struck 198–217 CE, showing his laureate right-facing bust and a Latin legend encircling the design.
Ancient
Brutus Aureus
The gold aureus of Marcus Junius Brutus, struck 42 BC, whose reverse celebrates Caesar's assassination with EID MAR, a cap of liberty, and two daggers.
Ancient
100 Forint (Commemorative)
A Hungarian bi-metallic 100 Forint commemorative pairing the national coat of arms with a bird of prey in flight, struck in a gold-toned ring and pale center.
Commemorative
Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach 5 Mark Wedding Commemorative
A silver German Empire 5 Mark of Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach struck to mark a grand-ducal wedding, showing conjoined bride-and-groom profile busts.
Commemorative
France 20 Centimes
A small gold-colored French Fifth Republic coin showing Marianne in profile, worth one-fifth of a franc, struck for four decades before the euro.
Circulation
Spanish Colonial 2 Reales (Milled)
A small milled silver coin of the Spanish Empire, struck in colonial American mints; this example is dated 1776 and shows heraldic lions, castles and a crowned shield.
Colonial
Henri V Five Francs
An 1831 French five-franc piece struck for the Legitimist pretender Henri V, showing his young profile and the royal fleur-de-lis shield.
World
Halfpenny of Henry VIII
A tiny hand-struck Tudor silver halfpenny of Henry VIII, showing a crowned facing bust on the obverse and a long cross over a shield of arms on the reverse.
Hammered
Gold Crown of Henry VIII (Third Coinage)
A hammered Tudor gold crown of five shillings struck during Henry VIII's Third Coinage, the debased issue that earned him the nickname "Old Coppernose."
Hammered
Penny of Cnut
Anglo-Saxon silver penny of King Cnut (Canute), showing a diademed bust facing left with a cross-and-pellets reverse, struck c.1024-1030.
Medieval Coins
Aureus of Faustina II
Roman imperial gold coin with the draped bust of Faustina II, daughter of Antoninus Pius and wife of Marcus Aurelius, struck around 147-150 AD.
Ancient Coins
Lebanese 1 Piastre
A small holed bronze 1 Piastre of Greater Lebanon dated 1925, struck under the French Mandate, with bilingual legends and an ornamental wreath framing the value.
World
East Africa Protectorate 1 Cent
A small holed one-cent coin of the British East Africa Protectorate, struck in base metal with a crowned, portrait-free design around a central hole.
World
Gold Toman of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar
A gold toman of Agha Mohammad Khan, founder of the Qajar dynasty, struck at Qazvin in AH 1206–1207 (1792–1793), covered in Persian calligraphy with no portrait.
Persia / Iran
Eritrea 1 Tallero
A large silver trade dollar struck for Italian Eritrea under King Umberto I, carrying crowned heraldic arms and a Savoy eagle, dated 1891.
World
William IV One Rupee
Silver one-rupee coin of British India struck in 1835 under the East India Company, bearing the right-facing bust of King William IV.
British India
Gold Dinar of al-Mustanjid
A hand-struck Abbasid gold dinar of Caliph al-Mustanjid, bearing only Arabic calligraphy within concentric ring borders and dated AH 557.
Islamic (Medieval)
Gold Dinar of al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah
A gold dinar of the Fatimid caliph al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah dated AH 343, struck as concentric Arabic inscriptions with no image on either face.
Islamic (Medieval)
Spanish Colonial Cob 8 Reales
A hand-struck silver cob 8 reales of Spain's American colonies—the irregular, hammered “piece of eight” bearing the crowned Habsburg arms and Pillars of Hercules.
Cob Coinage
Shanxi 2 Fen
A holed Republic-era Chinese copper 2 Fen struck for Shanxi Province, dated 1931, with a numeral 2 and Chinese legends around a central hole.
Circulation
Guangxu Yuanbao 50 Cents
A Qing-dynasty silver half-dollar bearing the legend Guangxu Yuanbao and a coiled dragon, struck by Chinese provincial mints during the Guangxu Emperor's reign.
Circulation
Solidus of Valens
A late Roman gold solidus struck for Valens, eastern emperor from AD 364 to 378, showing his diademed profile facing right.
Ancient
Solidus of Constantine I the Great
Constantine the Great's gold solidus, a high-purity coin struck from about AD 309 that became the standard of late Roman and Byzantine gold.
Ancient
Denarius of Vitellius
A silver denarius of the emperor Vitellius, struck during his brief reign in AD 69, showing his heavy-jowled portrait with curly hair.
Ancient