Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Two-Cent Piece
A short-lived Civil War-era coin notable as the first U.S. coin to bear the motto 'IN GOD WE TRUST,' issued to help ease a wartime coin shortage.
United States
1796 Half Cent
One of the great rarities of American copper coinage, the 1796 half cent was struck in the Liberty Cap design in a very limited quantity, with 'With Pole' and rarer 'No Pole' varieties known.
United States
Lincoln Shield Cent
The current Lincoln cent reverse, introduced in 2010, depicts a Union shield replacing the earlier Lincoln Memorial design as the fourth reverse in the cent's history.
United States
Victoria Large Cent
Canada's first bronze large cent, struck 1858-1901 under Queen Victoria, larger and heavier than the modern Canadian cent.
Canadian
Indian Head Cent
A long-running 19th-century one-cent coin depicting Liberty in a Native American-style feathered headdress, popular with collectors for its accessible half-century run.
United States
Massachusetts Cent (1787-1788)
State-issued copper coinage struck by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1787 and 1788, notable as the first official U.S. coinage to use the denomination 'cent'.
United States
1914-D Lincoln Cent
A famous key date in the Lincoln wheat cent series, prized for its low mintage from the Denver Mint and ranked among the most important dates collectors need to complete the series.
United States
1794 Flowing Hair Cent
An early United States large copper cent from the first years of the Mint, associated with the Flowing Hair Liberty portrait used on the nation's earliest coinage.
United States
1943 Bronze Lincoln Cent
An extremely rare mint error in which a small number of 1943 Lincoln cents were accidentally struck in leftover bronze rather than the intended wartime zinc-coated steel.
Errors & Varieties
Edward VII Large Cent
Canada's large bronze cent struck 1902-1910 under King Edward VII, continuing the pre-1920 large cent format.
Canadian
Flowing Hair Wreath Cent
The replacement for the controversial Chain cent, struck for just a few months in 1793 with a simple wreath reverse instead of a chain.
United States
Classic Head Large Cent
A short-lived early copper cent design with Liberty wearing a simple fillet, struck during the years surrounding the War of 1812.
United States
Draped Bust Large Cent
An early American copper cent showing a classically draped Liberty, based on a Gilbert Stuart portrait, minted at the dawn of United States coinage.
United States
Liberty Cap Half Cent
The first design used on the U.S. half cent, struck from 1793 to 1797, showing Liberty wearing a soft cap on the obverse and a wreath on the reverse.
United States
Braided Hair Half Cent
The final United States half cent design, struck from 1840 to 1857, featuring Liberty with braided hair, before the denomination was discontinued.
United States
Lincoln Bicentennial Cent (2009)
A one-year series of four different reverse designs issued in 2009 to mark the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth and the centennial of the Lincoln cent.
Commemorative
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
50 Euro Cent Coin
A gold-colored circulating euro coin worth half a euro, struck in a copper-based Nordic gold alloy and easily recognized by its distinctive scalloped-edge shape and national obverse design.
European
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