Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
1878 Twenty-Cent Piece (Proof)
The final-year proof-only issue of the US twenty-cent piece, struck for collectors just before Congress formally ended the short-lived denomination.
United States
1877 Twenty-Cent Piece (Proof)
A proof-only issue of the twenty-cent piece, struck for collectors after the denomination had already been abandoned for regular circulation.
United States
1875-CC Twenty-Cent Piece
A Carson City strike of the short-lived US twenty-cent piece, valued both for its unusual denomination and its Wild West mint origin.
United States
1851 Silver Three-Cent Piece
The first-year issue of the tiny Type I silver three-cent piece, nicknamed the trime, created to ease a national shortage of small change and postage-stamp coinage.
United States
1864 L Indian Head Cent
A famous variety of the 1864 bronze Indian Head cent bearing a tiny L on Liberty's ribbon for designer James Longacre, one of the most recognized key varieties in the series.
United States
Copper-Nickel Indian Head Cent
The earliest Indian Head cents, struck in copper-nickel from 1859 to 1864 before the Mint switched to a thinner bronze alloy, nicknamed 'white cents' for their pale color.
United States
1793 Liberty Cap Half Cent
The first-year half cent, struck in 1793 with a distinctive 'Head Facing Left' Liberty Cap design used only that single year before the design was revised.
United States
1972 Doubled Die Lincoln Cent
A famous Lincoln cent error showing strong doubling on the obverse date and lettering, caused by a misaligned die hub during production at the Philadelphia Mint.
Errors & Varieties
1909-S Indian Head Cent
The final and lowest-mintage Indian Head cent, struck at the San Francisco Mint in the series' last year before the Lincoln cent debuted.
United States
1943 Copper Lincoln Cent
An extremely rare mint error where a handful of 1943 cents were struck on leftover bronze planchets instead of the wartime steel used that year, making it one of the most famous US coin errors.
Errors & Varieties
1944 Steel Lincoln Cent
A scarce transitional error in which a small number of 1944 cents were struck on leftover steel planchets after the Mint had already returned to bronze, the mirror-image counterpart to the famous 1943 copper cent.
Errors & Varieties
Talbot, Allum & Lee Cent
A merchant token issued by the New York trading firm Talbot, Allum & Lee to help ease the shortage of small change in the 1790s, featuring a sailing ship on the obverse.
United States
Draped Bust Half Cent
An early U.S. copper coin depicting a draped bust of Liberty, struck for everyday small change in the first decade of the 19th century.
United States
Matte Proof Lincoln Cent
A special proof finish used on Lincoln cents from 1909 to 1916, featuring a fine, sandy, non-reflective surface instead of the mirror-like brilliance of earlier proof coins.
United States
1857 Flying Eagle Cent
The first-year circulation issue of the Flying Eagle Cent, marking the debut of the small-format cent that replaced the old large copper cent.
United States
1858 Flying Eagle Cent
The final year of the short-lived Flying Eagle Cent, struck in Large Letters and Small Letters varieties before the Indian Head design replaced it in 1859.
United States
Flowing Hair Chain Cent
The first cent struck for circulation by the United States Mint, showing Liberty with flowing hair and a controversial 15-link chain on the reverse.
United States
Braided Hair Large Cent
The final large cent design, showing Liberty with braided hair, produced until the bulky copper cent was replaced by the small Flying Eagle cent in 1857.
United States
Nickel Three-Cent Piece
A post-Civil War small coin struck in copper-nickel to replace the fragile silver three-cent piece and small-denomination paper currency then in circulation.
United States
1864 Two-Cent Piece
The debut year of the two-cent piece, the first US coin to bear the motto In God We Trust, issued in Small Motto and Large Motto varieties.
United States
Fasces Three-Cent Nickel
A nickname sometimes applied to the copper-nickel Three-Cent Piece of 1865-1889, whose reverse wreath-and-numeral design is occasionally likened to classical fasces imagery from early pattern experiments.
United States
Bronze Indian Head Cent
The bronze-alloy Indian Head cent struck from 1864 through 1909, replacing the earlier copper-nickel version and serving as the last cent design before Lincoln's portrait appeared in 1909.
United States
Classic Head Half Cent
A half cent design used from 1809 to 1836, featuring a Liberty head with a headband inscribed LIBERTY, succeeding the Draped Bust type.
United States
1922 No D Lincoln Cent
A famous Lincoln cent error from Denver where a worn or clogged die produced cents lacking the D mint mark, since Denver was the sole mint striking cents that year.
Errors & Varieties