Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Scottish Coin (Uncertain)
A worn hammered copper-alloy Scottish coin, apparently of the reign of Charles I, showing a bearded profile and a heraldic reverse with lettering.
Hammered
Najd Silver Coin
Silver trade coin catalogued to Najd, central Arabia, bearing a left-facing Victoria Queen bust and an 1862 date in the British India rupee style.
Arabia
Congolese Commemorative Coin
An 1889 holed copper 10-centime coin of the Congo Free State, with a radiant five-pointed star, the value 10 C, and a ring of small stars.
World
Philip II Gold Half Stater
Gold half stater of Philip II of Macedon, c. 359-336 BC, showing the head of Heracles and an eagle perched on a thunderbolt.
Ancient
Gold Toman of Ahmad Shah Qajar
A Qajar-era gold toman bearing the portrait bust and tall headdress of Ahmad Shah, with Persian legends, date and mint, and a wreathed calligraphic reverse.
Persia / Iran
Gold Dinar of Abd al-Malik
An early Umayyad gold dinar of Caliph Abd al-Malik, the 'Standing Caliph' type, bearing a robed standing figure and Arabic religious inscriptions.
Islamic (Medieval)
Gold Dinar of Malik Shah I
A hand-struck Seljuk gold dinar naming Malik Shah I (r. 1072–1092), covered in Arabic inscriptions with the ruler's titles and genealogy and an ornamental cartouche.
Islamic (Medieval)
Gold Dinar of Al-Walid I
An early Islamic gold dinar struck under the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I (705-715 CE), bearing only Arabic Kufic inscriptions and no images on either face.
Islamic (Medieval)
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
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)
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
American Arts Commemorative Series Gold Medallion
A U.S. Treasury gold bullion medallion series (1980–1984) honoring American artists; the photographed 1981 one-ounce piece features author Mark Twain.
Bullion Medallion
Gold Toman of Fath-Ali Shah Qajar
A hand-struck Qajar gold toman of Fath-Ali Shah dated AH 1226–1227 (1811–1812), covered in ornate Persian calligraphy with no portrait or figural imagery.
Persia / Iran
Coin Weight for Louis d'Or
A small bronze monetary weight used to verify a gold Louis d'Or on a balance, showing a worn royal profile and a heraldic reverse.
Token/weight
Louis d'Or Coin Weight
A French bronze monetary weight (poids monétaire) made to check the weight of a gold Louis d'Or, not a coin itself but a money-changer's balance weight.
Coin Weight
Gustav I Silver Coin
Early-Renaissance Swedish silver of Gustav I Vasa (r. 1523–1560), pairing a crowned armored royal bust with a crowned heraldic lion.
Medieval
Bronze Coin of Corinth (Augustan)
A Roman colonial bronze struck at Corinth during the reign of Augustus, showing a laureate imperial portrait; the example here has a badly corroded reverse.
Ancient
Venezuelan Silver Coin (1879)
An 1879 Venezuelan silver coin: the left-facing head of Simón Bolívar on one side and the national coat of arms in a wreath on the other.
Circulation
Qi State Knife Coin
A cast bronze knife-shaped coin of the ancient state of Qi, with Chinese characters running down the curved blade and a ringed handle terminal.
Ancient
Gold Crown of Henry VIII (Third Coinage)
A hammered Tudor gold crown of five shillings struck during Henry VIII's Third Coinage, the debased issue that earned him the nickname "Old Coppernose."
Hammered
Gold Toman of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar
A gold toman of Agha Mohammad Khan, founder of the Qajar dynasty, struck at Qazvin in AH 1206–1207 (1792–1793), covered in Persian calligraphy with no portrait.
Persia / Iran
Gold Dinar of Abu'l-Fawaris Ahmad (Buyid)
A hand-struck gold dinar of the Iranian Buyid dynasty, naming the emir Abu'l-Fawaris Ahmad and dated AH 358, covered entirely in Kufic Arabic with no imagery.
Islamic (Medieval)
Clark & Co Territorial Gold Half Eagle
An 1860 privately struck $5 gold piece from Clark, Gruber & Co. of Denver, coined from Pikes Peak gold during the Colorado gold rush.
Half Eagle
Bronze Coin of Cleopatra VII
Ptolemaic bronze coin of Cleopatra VII of Egypt, 51-30 BC, showing her draped diademed bust in profile as sole named female ruler of the dynasty.
Ancient