Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Nummus of Maximianus
A late-Roman bronze nummus (follis) of the emperor Maximianus, with his right-facing laureate portrait and a standing deity on the reverse.
Ancient
1 Lats (Christmas Bells)
Latvian 2012 commemorative 1 Lats showing Christmas bells with decorative ornament, paired with the national coat of arms on the obverse.
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
Papua New Guinea 5 Kina
Papua New Guinea's 1975 five-kina coin: Queen Elizabeth II in profile on the obverse, a bird-of-paradise with the K5 denomination on the reverse.
Circulation
Newfoundland Five Cents
Tiny sterling-silver 5-cent piece of the Dominion of Newfoundland; the 1929 issue bears King George V and a crowned denomination reverse.
Canadian & Provincial
New Zealand Sixpence
New Zealand's small silver sixpence, famed for its native-bird reverse. This 1934 example shows King George V and the bird design with NEW ZEALAND SIXPENCE.
New Zealand
Japanese 20 Yen
Early Meiji-era Japanese gold coin showing a dragon among clouds on one side and a floral design with the 20 yen denomination on the other.
World Coins
Aureus of Marcus Aurelius
Small Roman gold coin of the reign of Marcus Aurelius; this piece shows a diademed portrait and a standing deity or personification, dated to 163 AD.
Ancient Coins
Antoninianus of Aurelian
Late Roman billon coin of Emperor Aurelian, showing his radiate-crowned bust and a standing deity or personification on the reverse.
Ancient Coins
Kenya 40 Shillings
A bimetallic Kenyan commemorative coin denominated 40 shillings, pairing a presidential portrait with the national coat of arms.
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
Edward III Quarter Noble
Small medieval English gold coin of Edward III, showing a crowned shield of arms on the obverse and an ornate floral cross design on the reverse.
Medieval Coins
Indian Silver Coin
A silver coin of British India bearing Persian/Urdu calligraphy and a mint mark, in the Mughal-derived inscriptional style of Company-era coinage.
British India
Burma One Kyat (Mindon Min)
Silver kyat of King Mindon Min's Burma, showing the royal peacock with spread tail on the obverse and the denomination within a wreath on the reverse.
Southeast Asia
Byzantine Follis
Large bronze follis of the Byzantine Empire, this example under Constans II (from 641 AD), with an imperial portrait and a big M value mark topped by a cross.
Medieval
Ceylon 10 Cents (Cupronickel)
A wartime 1944 British Ceylon ten-cent piece in cupronickel, its obverse bearing the uniformed left-facing bust of King George VI and the legend GEORGE VI KING.
South Asia
Wang Mang Spade Money
A cast bronze spade-shaped coin of the Xin Dynasty, issued under the reformer Wang Mang, its flat blade bearing raised Chinese inscriptions.
Ancient
Agathokles Commemorative Tetradrachm for Alexander the Great
Silver tetradrachm of Agathokles of Syracuse, c. 310-300 BC, struck in the Alexander tradition with a bearded head and an enthroned deity reverse.
Ancient
Hanover-Luneburg 1.5 Thaler
A large silver 1.5 Thaler of Brunswick-Luneburg (Hanover), dated 1681, with a busy multi-shield heraldic design and the motto SOL BONA QUE HONESTA.
German States
German 5 Reichsmark Garrison Church Commemorative
A 1934 German silver 5 Reichsmark commemorative with a spread-winged Reichsadler and 'Deutsches Reich' on the obverse and the Potsdam Garrison Church reverse.
Commemorative
Austrian Award Medal
A silver Austrian award medal with a crowned double-headed eagle bearing a coat of arms on the obverse and a decorative heraldic shield on the reverse.
Medal
Augsburg Commemorative Medal
A gold commemorative medal of the Free Imperial City of Augsburg, showing a detailed spired cityscape with religious imagery and a heraldic reverse.
Medal
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
Anglo-Saxon Sceatta
Tiny thick silver coin of early Anglo-Saxon England, the example showing a stylized bird with geometric patterns and symbolic reverse designs.
Medieval Coins