Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Bronze As of Nero
A Roman bronze as struck under the emperor Nero (54–68 AD), bearing his laureate portrait on the obverse and an imperial reverse type.
Ancient
Aureus of Augustus
Roman imperial gold coin bearing the bare head of Augustus, first emperor of Rome, struck during his reign from 27 BC to 14 AD.
Ancient Coins
Dirham of Sistan
A silver Umayyad dirham struck at the Sijistan (Sistan) mint in AH 82 (701–702 CE), its faces filled with Kufic Arabic inscriptions ringed by concentric borders.
Islamic (Medieval)
Tetradrachm of Eretria
A silver tetradrachm attributed to Eretria on Euboea, pairing the head of a female figure with a standing bull and the Greek legend EYBOIA.
Ancient
Solidus of Theodosius I
A late Roman gold solidus struck for the emperor Theodosius I (AD 379-395), showing his diademed portrait and the legend D N THEODOSIVS AVG.
Ancient
Sestertius of Caligula
Large Roman imperial bronze sestertius bearing the head of Gaius, better known as Caligula, struck during his short reign from 37 to 41 AD.
Ancient Coins
Aureus of A. Manlius Vulso
A rare late-Republican Roman gold aureus of the moneyer A. Manlius Vulso, c. 80 BC, showing a capped head and a horseman carrying a military ensign.
Ancient
Sovereign of William IV
A 22-carat gold sovereign of William IV, with the king's bare head facing right and a crowned royal shield of arms on the reverse.
Milled
Sixpence of Elizabeth I
A hammered silver sixpence of Elizabeth I, showing the crowned, ruff-collared queen in profile and the royal shield, most bearing a date beside a mint mark.
Hammered
Gold Dinar of al-Muqtadi
An aniconic Abbasid gold dinar of Caliph al-Muqtadi, covered on both faces with Arabic calligraphy and ornamental borders, struck in the later 11th century.
Islamic (Medieval)
Five Guineas of George II
The largest English gold coin of George II's reign, showing his laureate profile and a crowned heraldic shield of the royal arms on the reverse.
Milled
Copper Fals of Shaban II
A Mamluk copper fals struck under Sultan al-Ashraf Sha'ban II of Egypt, decorated with geometric ornament and Arabic legends rather than any figural image.
Islamic (Medieval)
Quincunx of Capua
Bronze quincunx (5 unciae) struck by Capua in Campania in the 3rd century BC, pairing a diademed female head with a lion or griffin and five value pellets.
Ancient
Denarius of Nerva
Roman Imperial silver denarius of Emperor Nerva (96-98 AD), with his laureate portrait and the legend IMP NERVA CAES AVG, and a seated Concordia reverse.
Ancient
Crown of George IV
A milled silver crown of George IV, with a laureate head facing left and Pistrucci's St George and the dragon on the reverse; the photographed piece is dated 1822.
Milled
Penny of William I
Hammered silver penny of William the Conqueror, the example showing a profile portrait of the king and a decorated cross reverse, struck circa 1075.
Medieval Coins
Solidus of Valentinian I
The gold solidus of Valentinian I (AD 364-375), a pure-gold coin bearing his pearl-diademed profile that anchored the late Roman monetary system.
Ancient
Centenionalis of Constans
A mid-4th-century Roman bronze of Constans bearing the FEL TEMP REPARATIO reform reverse, showing a soldier lifting a small captive from a hut.
Ancient
Antoninianus of Carinus
Bronze radiate coin of the emperor Carinus (283-285 AD), recognizable by his spiked crown and a standing or seated deity on the reverse.
Ancient
Denarius of Lucius Verus
A silver Roman denarius of the emperor Lucius Verus (161–169 AD), showing his curly-haired, bearded portrait facing right with a Latin legend.
Ancient
Denarius of M. Sanquinius
A silver denarius struck at Rome in 17 BC by the moneyer M. Sanquinius under Augustus, tied to the Secular Games, with a male portrait and a standing herald.
Ancient
Penny of Alfred the Great
Hand-struck silver penny of Alfred the Great of Wessex, showing a right-facing royal bust and a cross-based reverse with a moneyer's inscription.
Medieval Coins
Siliqua of Gratian
A small late Roman silver siliqua of the emperor Gratian (AD 367-383), with his diademed bust on the obverse and a standing figure or personification on the reverse.
Ancient
Follis of Galerius
A large silvered bronze follis of the emperor Galerius (Augustus AD 305-311), struck across the Tetrarchic mints with a laureate portrait and a standing deity reverse.
Ancient