Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
1 Pahlavi Gold Coin
A gold coin of Pahlavi-era Iran, with Persian text and a crowned royal emblem on one side and the Lion and Sun within laurel wreaths on the other.
Persia / Iran
Hong Kong 20 Cents
A small British Hong Kong silver 20 Cents of Edward VII, with the crowned royal profile on one side and a Chinese dragon and value on the other.
Circulation
Macao 100 Patacas Return to China Commemorative
A 1999 Macao 100 patacas commemorative marking the return to China: a Portuguese ship with a gold center on one side, the Macao coat of arms on the other.
Commemorative
Leif Erikson Commemorative 1000 Króna
Icelandic silver commemorative dated 2000, marking the millennium of Leif Erikson's voyage and the Norse discovery of North America.
Commemorative
2 Rigsdaler (Gold)
A gold striking of Denmark's 1863 2 rigsdaler, with the right-facing bust of Christian IX and the crowned royal arms — a rare early piece of his reign.
European
Ancient Greek Didrachm
An ancient Greek silver didrachm worth two drachms, here with a bearded male head and a horse-and-rider reverse in the tradition of Magna Graecia.
Ancient
1 Öre
A small copper 1 öre of Sweden dated 1873, with a left-facing profile of King Oscar II, the legend SVERIGE OCH NORGE, and the value in a laurel wreath.
Modern
1 Krona (Gold)
A gold 1 krona of Sweden dated 1906, bearing the left-facing portrait of King Oscar II and the Swedish royal coat of arms with lions and three crowns.
Modern
1 Franc (Leopold II)
A late-19th-century Belgian silver franc of King Leopold II, with his left-facing profile on the obverse and a crowned coat of arms on the reverse.
Modern
1 Lats (Christmas Bells)
Latvian 2012 commemorative 1 Lats showing Christmas bells with decorative ornament, paired with the national coat of arms on the obverse.
Commemorative
100 Dinara
A copper-nickel 100 Dinara circulation coin of socialist Yugoslavia dated 1987, with a big numeral 100 on one face and the Yugoslav state emblem on the other.
Modern
1 Euro (10 Years EMU)
Dutch bi-metallic 1 Euro marking ten years of Economic and Monetary Union, with a stylized integration design and the twin dates 1999 and 2009.
Commemorative
Escudo (Joanna and Charles V, contemporary copy)
A contemporary gilded copper-alloy copy imitating a Spanish gold escudo of Joanna and Charles V, made to pass as the real Habsburg gold coin.
Early Modern
20 Drachmai
Greece's 1884 gold 20 Drachmai of King George I: a small Latin Monetary Union gold coin with the king's portrait and the crowned royal arms.
Modern
Trinidad and Tobago 50 Cents
A large copper-nickel Caribbean circulation coin; the 1967 example carries the national coat of arms and country name on the obverse and the 50-cent value on the reverse.
Circulation
Kenya 20 Shillings
A modern bimetallic Kenyan circulation coin showing a president's portrait on the obverse and the national coat of arms on the reverse.
World
Medieval Silver Cut Farthing
A quarter of a medieval silver penny, physically cut along the reverse cross to make small change before round farthings became common.
British Isles
New Brunswick One Cent
A bronze one-cent piece dated 1860 showing a steam locomotive with NB and ONE CENT — a New Brunswick locomotive-type token distinct from the official 1861/1864 cent.
Canadian & Provincial
New Zealand Threepence
New Zealand's small silver threepence; this 1933 example carries the crowned bust of King George V with GEORGIVS V and his royal titles.
New Zealand
British Brass Threepence
Chunky twelve-sided nickel-brass threepence of George VI, showing his head and a thrift plant reverse; the example shown is dated 1942.
British Isles
British East Africa Half Shilling
A small low-fineness silver coin of British East Africa bearing King George VI; the half shilling equalled fifty cents in the East African system.
World
Grant Memorial Half Dollar
A 1922 U.S. silver commemorative marking the centennial of Ulysses S. Grant's birth, with his profile and the dates 1822-1922, issued with and without a star.
Classic Commemorative
Lincoln Wheat Cent
U.S. one-cent coin struck 1909–1958 with Lincoln's profile and a pair of wheat ears framing ONE CENT; the 1909-S here is a scarce first-year San Francisco issue.
Small Cent
Pillar Dollar (Columnario)
Machine-struck Spanish colonial silver 8 reales showing two crowned globes between the Pillars of Hercules; a trusted world trade coin.
World Coins