Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
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
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
1 Escudo
Portugal's first silver escudo, struck in 1910 to mark the founding of the Republic, with an allegorical female head and the crowned national shield.
Modern
Roman Republican Denarius (Unidentified)
A silver Roman Republican denarius of about 115-114 BC: helmeted Roma on the obverse, Victory driving a two-horse chariot on the reverse.
Ancient
Liberty Head Half Eagle
United States $5 gold coin with a left-facing Liberty head ringed by stars and a spread-winged eagle reverse; the pictured piece is dated 1838.
United States
Canadian Five Cents (Nickel)
Canada's five-cent 'nickel,' with G.E. Kruger Gray's beaver reverse. This 1987 example pairs the beaver with an Elizabeth II portrait.
Canadian & Provincial
Capped Bust Half Eagle
Early U.S. five-dollar gold coin with a left-facing capped Liberty and a shield-breasted eagle marked "5 D."; the 1822 shown is a legendary rarity.
United States
Henri V Five Francs
An 1831 French five-franc piece struck for the Legitimist pretender Henri V, showing his young profile and the royal fleur-de-lis shield.
World
U.S. Gold Five Dollar (Half Eagle)
Modern U.S. $5 gold coin: Saint-Gaudens striding Liberty with torch on the obverse and a soaring eagle reverse; this piece is dated 1987.
Us
French Silver Franc
A small Third Republic silver 1-franc coin with an allegorical Marianne head and a REPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE reverse; the pictured piece is dated 1899.
World
Numapis Denarius
A silver denarius of the Roman Republic (1st century BC) pairing a male portrait facing right with a ship or galley and lettering on the reverse.
Ancient
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
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
500 Reis
A Portuguese silver 500 Reis of Queen Maria II, with her left-facing draped bust on the obverse and a crowned coat of arms on the reverse.
Modern
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
2 Koruny
A circulating Czech Republic coin introduced in 1993, known by its eleven-sided shape, the Czech heraldic lion, and a Great Moravian jewel motif beside 2 Kč.
Modern
Egyptian 10 Piastres
A modern Egyptian 10 piastres in cupro-nickel, its face carrying Arabic script framed by geometric ornament and diamond-shaped decorative patterns.
World
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
Kenya 1 Shilling
A circulating one-shilling coin of the Republic of Kenya bearing President Jomo Kenyatta on the obverse and the Kenyan coat of arms on the reverse.
World
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
Bald Eagle Commemorative Half Eagle
A 2008 U.S. commemorative gold $5 half eagle honoring the recovery of the American bald eagle, featuring an eagle design and a heraldic Great Seal eagle.
Commemoratives
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
1 Franc Ceres
A small silver French franc showing the head of Cérès, goddess of the harvest, wearing wheat and a star, with the LIBERTE EGALITE FRATERNITE reverse dated 1871.
Circulation
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