Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Half Thistle Merk
A hammered Scottish silver half merk of James VI, showing a crowned coat of arms on one side and a crowned thistle on the other.
Hammered
Half Guinea of Anne
An English milled gold half guinea of Queen Anne, showing her left-facing bust and a crowned cruciform reverse of shields with fleurs-de-lis.
Milled
Liberty Head Nickel
U.S. five-cent piece struck 1883–1912, showing a left-facing Liberty head ringed by stars, with a Roman-numeral "V" reverse; the 1913 issue is a legendary rarity.
Nickel Five Cent
Half Sovereign
A small British 22-carat gold coin worth ten shillings; this example shows Queen Victoria's veiled, crowned Jubilee Head portrait and is dated 1887.
World Coins
Franklin Half Dollar
U.S. 90% silver fifty-cent piece struck 1948–1963, with Benjamin Franklin's profile and a Liberty Bell reverse flanked by a small eagle.
Half Dollar
Capped Bust Half Dollar
U.S. fifty-cent silver coin struck 1807–1839, showing Liberty in a Phrygian cap surrounded by stars and a heraldic eagle on a shield.
Half Dollar
Classic Head Half Cent
A small U.S. copper half cent of 1809–1836 showing Liberty in a beaded headband ringed by stars, with a plain wreath and HALF CENT on the reverse.
Half Cent
Capped Head Half Eagle
A U.S. five-dollar gold coin struck 1813–1834, showing a left-facing capped Liberty with stars and a heraldic eagle bearing a shield and E PLURIBUS UNUM.
United States
British Decimal Half Penny
The smallest UK decimal coin, a tiny bronze half-penny introduced with decimalisation in 1971, bearing a crown reverse and the Machin portrait of Elizabeth II.
British Isles
Half Groat of Henry VIII
A small hammered English silver coin worth twopence, struck across the reign of Henry VIII and bearing his crowned facing bust.
Hammered
Half Crown of William IV
A milled British silver half crown of King William IV, with the king's bare head facing right and a crowned royal shield of arms on the reverse.
Milled
Charles II Half Guinea
A small milled gold coin of Charles II showing the king's laureate profile and a cruciform arrangement of crowned shields on the reverse.
Milled
Half Pahlavi Gold Coin
A small Iranian gold coin worth half a Pahlavi, showing Reza Shah in a military cap on one side and the Lion and Sun with a crown on the other.
Persia / Iran
Pilgrim Tercentenary Half Dollar
A 1920-1921 U.S. silver commemorative half dollar marking 300 years since the Pilgrims' landing, with a Pilgrim figure and the Mayflower.
Classic Commemorative
Roanoke Island Half Dollar
A 1937 U.S. silver half dollar marking 350 years since the Roanoke Island colony and the birth of Virginia Dare, with Sir Walter Raleigh and a sailing ship.
Classic Commemorative
New Rochelle Half Dollar
A 1938 U.S. silver half dollar marking the 250th anniversary of New Rochelle, New York, with a Huguenot founder leading a fatted calf and a fleur-de-lis reverse.
Classic Commemorative
Missouri Centennial Half Dollar
A 1921 U.S. silver commemorative half dollar marking 100 years of Missouri statehood, with a coonskin-capped frontiersman facing left and a frontier-scene reverse.
Classic Commemorative
Grant Memorial Half Dollar
A 1922 U.S. silver commemorative marking the centennial of Ulysses S. Grant's birth, with his profile and the dates 1822-1922, issued with and without a star.
Classic Commemorative
Iowa Centennial Half Dollar
A 1946 U.S. silver half dollar marking a century of Iowa statehood, showing the Old Stone Capitol at Iowa City and the state eagle with the Iowa motto.
Classic Commemorative
Columbian Exposition Half Dollar
The first U.S. commemorative half dollar, issued for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition with Christopher Columbus on the obverse and his three ships on the reverse.
Classic Commemorative
Carver-Washington Half Dollar
A U.S. silver commemorative half dollar (1951–1954) honoring George Washington Carver and Booker T. Washington, with their jugate profiles on the obverse.
Classic Commemorative
Delaware Tercentenary Half Dollar
A 1936 U.S. silver half dollar marking 300 years since Swedish colonists landed in Delaware, showing Old Swedes Church on one side and the ship Kalmar Nyckel on the other.
Classic Commemorative
Indian Head Half Eagle
U.S. $5 gold half eagle struck 1908–1929, with an unusual sunken (incuse) design: a headdressed Native American obverse and a standing eagle reverse.
Half Eagle
Charles I Half Crown
A large hammered silver half crown of Charles I, showing the king in portrait facing left and a crowned royal shield on the reverse.
Hammered