Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Joachimsthaler (Thaler)
A large early-16th-century Bohemian silver thaler from Joachimsthal, dated 1525; the coin whose name gave rise to the words 'thaler' and 'dollar'.
Early Modern
George Washington 250th Anniversary Half Dollar
A 1982 U.S. silver half dollar honoring the 250th anniversary of George Washington's birth; it revived both the commemorative program and 90% silver coinage.
Modern Commemorative
French 30 Sols
A silver coin of the early French Revolution showing Louis XVI as constitutional king on one side and a standing Liberty on the other.
Revolutionary
Sovereign of William IV
A 22-carat gold sovereign of William IV, with the king's bare head facing right and a crowned royal shield of arms on the reverse.
Milled
Sesquicentennial of American Independence Quarter Eagle
A 1926 U.S. commemorative $2.50 gold coin marking 150 years of American independence, with Liberty holding a torch and scroll and Independence Hall on the reverse.
Classic Commemorative
Half Crown of William III and Mary II
A milled silver half crown of the joint reign of William III and Mary II, showing their conjoined busts and a crowned heraldic shield, dated 1691.
Milled
20 Lei
Romania's first gold coin, the 1870 20 Lei of Prince Carol I, pairing his left-facing portrait with the national coat of arms.
Modern
1 Yen (Silver)
An early Meiji silver 1 Yen struck in Meiji 3 (1870), showing a coiled dragon with a radiant sun on one side and a wreathed imperial crest on the other.
Circulation
Guangxu Yuanbao 20 Cents
A machine-struck Qing silver 20 cents of the Guangxu era, with a coiled dragon on one face and a yin-yang (taiji) symbol on the other.
Circulation
Caballito Peso
A silver Mexican peso nicknamed for the horse on its obverse: an allegorical figure on horseback holding a torch aloft, backed by the eagle-and-serpent arms.
Circulation
Flowing Hair Stella
An 1879 U.S. $4 gold pattern coin with a flowing-hair Liberty obverse and a large-star "ONE STELLA" reverse; famous rarity, never circulated.
Stella
Clark & Co Territorial Gold Half Eagle
An 1860 privately struck $5 gold piece from Clark, Gruber & Co. of Denver, coined from Pikes Peak gold during the Colorado gold rush.
Half Eagle
East African 5 Cents
A holed copper-nickel colonial coin with a crown above scrollwork and EAST AFRICA lettering, issued by the East African Currency Board.
World
Crown of George III (Incorrupta)
A milled crown of George III dated 1817, named for its INCORRUPTA reverse legend, showing a laureate draped bust and crowned royal arms.
Milled
Holey Dollar
Australia's first struck coin: a Spanish silver dollar with its centre punched out, counterstamped NEW SOUTH WALES 1813 and revalued at five shillings.
Australian
Sierra Leone 20 Cents
A 1964 Sierra Leone 20 cents from the country's first decimal coinage, showing a portrait profile on one side and the national coat of arms with its lion on the other.
World
Thebes Stater
Silver stater of Thebes with the Boeotian shield and a bearded head of Dionysos, struck as federal coinage of the Boeotian League, c. 395-338 BC.
Ancient
Sovereign of George IV
A milled gold sovereign of Great Britain struck under George IV, with the king's laureate head and Pistrucci's St George slaying the dragon reverse, dated 1821.
Milled
200 CFA Francs
A modern West African CFA coin worth 200 francs, showing a bold '200 FCFA' with decorative border on one face and a crossed emblem on the other.
World
Tymf
A debased Polish silver coin of 1663 tariffed at 30 groszy, famous for a Latin motto declaring the state's safety worth more than the metal.
Early Modern
French Semeuse 5 Francs
A silver French 5-franc coin of the Fifth Republic showing the Sower (Semeuse) striding left, with a flowered wreath around the value on the reverse.
Circulation
Penny of William IV
A large copper penny of King William IV, struck in the 1830s, with the king's right-facing head and the Latin legend GULIELMUS IIII D:G.
Milled
Maundy Money Penny
Tiny silver penny given as royal alms; this James II example (1687) shows a crowned bust and a crowned Roman numeral I reverse.
Maundy
Shilling of George II
A milled silver shilling of George II, with a left-facing bust reading GEORGIVS II DEI GRATIA and a crowned cruciform-shields reverse; this one is a 1736 roses and plumes issue.
Milled