Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Palestine 2 Mils
A small bronze coin of British Mandate Palestine, inscribed PALESTINE in English, Arabic and Hebrew, with an olive sprig above the TWO MILS value.
World
Spanish Colonial Cob 2 Reales
A crude hand-struck silver cob worth a quarter of a piece of eight, showing a cross on one side and the Habsburg Spanish arms on the other.
Cob Coinage
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
Hanover 2/3 Thaler
A large German States silver 2/3 Thaler of Brunswick-Luneburg (Hanover) dated 1694, with an ornate coat of arms and the leaping Saxon horse reverse.
German States
Liberia 20 Dollars
A modern Liberian 20-dollar commemorative coin dated 2001, pairing the national arms with a saint and ecclesiastical architecture on the reverse.
World
Oaxaca 20 Centavos
A copper 20 centavos struck by revolutionary-era Oaxaca in 1915, showing a profiled bust on a round base and a large numeral 20 with the Mexican eagle.
Revolutionary
Guangdong 20 Cents
A silver 20-cent coin of Kwangtung (Guangdong) province, struck under the Guangxu Emperor with a coiled dragon on one side and Chinese legends on the other.
Circulation
Netherlands East Indies 2 Cent
A wartime 1945 bronze 2-cent coin of the Dutch colony of the Netherlands East Indies, showing the crowned Netherlands shield and an ornate colonial reverse.
Southeast Asia
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
Spanish Colonial 2 Reales (Milled)
A small milled silver coin of the Spanish Empire, struck in colonial American mints; this example is dated 1776 and shows heraldic lions, castles and a crowned shield.
Colonial
Philippines 25 Centavos
Silvery base-metal 25 centavos of the young Republic of the Philippines, dated 1958: a standing figure with a liberty torch and the Republic's sunburst coat of arms.
Southeast Asia
Philippines 20 Centavos
A small wartime silver 20 centavos of the Commonwealth-era Philippines: a standing Liberty figure and Mayon volcano, with an eagle over a shield on the reverse.
Southeast Asia
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
Guangxu Yuanbao 7 Mace 2 Candareens
A silver Chinese dragon dollar of the Guangxu era, marked Guangxu Yuanbao and valued at 7 Mace 2 Candareens, with a coiled dragon on one face and Chinese legends on the other.
Circulation
Islamic Gold Dinar (LACMA M.2006.143.8)
A medieval Islamic gold dinar in the LACMA collection, struck with purely calligraphic Arabic legends and a decorative border — the classic imageless coin of the caliphates.
Islamic (Medieval)
Walking Liberty Half Dollar Centennial Gold
A 2016-W gold collector coin marking the centennial of the 1916 Walking Liberty half dollar, struck in 1/2 oz of 24-karat gold at West Point.
Half Dollar
Battle of Antietam Half Dollar
A 1937 U.S. silver half dollar marking 75 years since the Civil War Battle of Antietam, with jugate busts of Lee and McClellan and Burnside Bridge on the reverse.
Classic Commemorative
Library of Congress Bicentennial Silver Dollar
A 2000 U.S. silver dollar honoring the 200th anniversary of the Library of Congress, with a 'We the People' quill-and-scroll obverse and the Library facade on the reverse.
Modern Commemorative
Unite of James I
A hammered gold pound coin of James I, named to celebrate the union of England and Scotland under one crown.
Hammered
Denarius of C. Cato
Silver Roman Republican denarius struck at Rome in 123 BC by the moneyer C. Cato, with a helmeted head of Roma and Victory driving a chariot.
Ancient
Gold Dinar of Ahmad ibn Tulun
A late-9th-century Islamic gold dinar of the Tulunid ruler Ahmad ibn Tulun, its faces filled with concentric Arabic inscriptions and dated AH 268 (881–882 CE).
Islamic (Medieval)
Gold Tetradrachm of Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II
Ptolemaic gold of Egypt, c. 260-240 BC, with paired busts of Ptolemy II and Arsinoe II on one side and Ptolemy I and Berenike I on the other.
Ancient
Ilkhanid Dirham of Abu Said
A hand-struck Mongol Ilkhanate silver dirham of Abu Sa'id Bahadur Khan, with the ruler's titles set in a cartouche and religious inscriptions in concentric bands.
Islamic (Medieval)
Spirit of ANZAC Commemorative 50 Cents
A 2015 Australian silver-finish 50-cent commemorative marking the centenary of ANZAC, with soldier imagery and 1915-2015 dating.
Commemoratives