Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
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
1 Lira
A tiny, lightweight Vatican City lira of the 1950s under Pius XII, with the tiara-and-keys arms on the obverse and a standing figure of Charity on the reverse.
Modern
Gold Chervonets
Soviet gold coin of 1923 worth one chervonets (10 rubles), showing a peasant sowing before a rising sun and factories, with the Soviet state emblem.
World
Reis (Peninsular War)
A 1910 Portuguese silver Reis struck under King Manuel II to mark the centenary of the Peninsular War, dated 1808-1814 across the king's bust.
Modern
50 Korun
A 1944 silver 50 korun of the wartime Slovak State, showing the profile of Jozef Tiso and a shield with a double cross, struck for the state's fifth anniversary.
Modern
Grosz Miejski
A silver city grosz struck at Elbląg in 1533, pairing the town's crowned coat of arms with an eagle and civic inscriptions under the Polish crown.
Early Modern
2.5 Escudos
A copper-nickel 2.5 Escudos of the Portuguese Republic, showing a sailing caravel on the obverse and the national shield with the value 2$50.
Modern
8 Escudos (Carolus)
The largest Spanish gold coin of the age, the 8 Escudos or doubloon, struck under the Habsburg Carolus rulers with the crowned quartered royal arms.
Early Modern
2 Soldi
A small base-metal coin of the Republic of Genoa worth two soldi, typically showing a heraldic lion and a fortified castle gateway.
Early Modern
Prussian Taler
A large silver taler of the Kingdom of Prussia showing the crowned profile of Frederick II and a heraldic coat of arms, struck through the mid-to-late 1700s.
German States
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
Frankfurt am Main Taler
A 1772 silver Taler of the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt am Main, famed for its detailed city-view reverse with walls, towers and radiant sun.
German States
Erstein Notgeld 50 Pfennigs
A 1917 German emergency-money token for 50 Pfennigs from Erstein in Alsace, with the town coat of arms on the obverse and a large 50 on the reverse.
Token/notgeld
Brunswick 1/3 Thaler
A 1678 silver 1/3 thaler of the Duchy of Brunswick, showing the leaping Saxon steed on the obverse and a standing saintly figure with a cross on the reverse.
German States
Bonn Notgeld 50 Pfennig
A German emergency-money (Notgeld) 50 Pfennig of the city of Bonn, dated 1920, with the civic arms on the obverse and a Beethoven profile on the reverse.
Token/notgeld
India Four Anna
An early Republic of India quarter rupee (four annas) of 1950, showing the Ashoka Lion Capital emblem with radiating rays and the country name INDIA.
Modern India
Spanish Colonial 1 Real (Bourbon)
A small silver coin of Spain's American colonies from the early Bourbon era, showing a cross with ornaments on one side and the crowned royal arms on the other.
Colonial
Kenya 10 Shillings
A modern bimetallic circulating coin of the Republic of Kenya bearing President Jomo Kenyatta on the obverse and the national coat of arms on the reverse.
World
British Groat
A small George III silver fourpence of 1792, the British groat: laureate king's profile obverse, crowned shield and value reverse.
Circulation
30 Sols (Half Ecu)
A French Revolutionary silver 30 sols of 1791: profile of Louis XVI as 'Roi des Francais' obverse, standing Liberty reverse dated 'L'An 4 de la Liberte'.
Revolutionary
Barbados 25 Cents
A copper-nickel Caribbean circulation coin of Barbados; the 1998 example shows the national coat of arms on the obverse and the 25-cent value on the reverse.
Circulation
2 Francs Semeuse
A French silver two francs of the Third Republic showing Roty's striding Semeuse (Sower) on the obverse and the value with the national motto on the reverse.
Circulation
British Honduras One Cent
A colonial copper one cent of British Honduras under Queen Victoria, dated 1889, with the Queen's profile and the value and country name on the reverse.
Colonial
British North Borneo Half Cent
An 1885 copper half cent of British North Borneo: a bust in a laurel wreath on the obverse and the company arms with a heraldic supporter on the reverse.
Colonial