Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
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
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
Indian Silver Coin
A silver coin of British India bearing Persian/Urdu calligraphy and a mint mark, in the Mughal-derived inscriptional style of Company-era coinage.
British India
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
Ancient Sicilian Silver Coin
A silver coin of ancient Greek Sicily, showing a female goddess or nymph head on one face and a two-horse chariot (biga) on the other.
Ancient
Bahawalpur Gold Coin
A gold coin or medallic piece linked to the princely state of Bahawalpur, its obverse bearing a uniformed royal portrait and its reverse an ornate coat of arms.
South Asia
Half Pahlavi Gold Coin
A small Iranian gold coin worth half a Pahlavi, showing Reza Shah in a military cap on one side and the Lion and Sun with a crown on the other.
Persia / Iran
Eric XIV Silver Coin
Silver coin of Eric XIV of Sweden (r. 1560–1568), showing his crowned profile portrait and a heraldic Vasa/Three Crowns reverse, struck c. 1565.
Medieval
China Panda Gold Coin
A modern Chinese gold bullion coin with the Temple of Heaven on one side and a giant panda on the other; this 2016 issue is a 30-gram gold piece.
Bullion
Unattributed Gold Coin
A gold-colored coin of uncertain origin: a portrait with East Asian calligraphy on one face and a radiating sunburst within a decorative border on the other.
Unknown
Warring States Knife Coin
A cast bronze knife coin (dao bi) of China's Warring States period, shaped like a small blade with a ringed handle and cast inscriptions.
Ancient
Solidus of Constantine I the Great
Constantine the Great's gold solidus, a high-purity coin struck from about AD 309 that became the standard of late Roman and Byzantine gold.
Ancient
Macao Silver Coin (1974)
A 1974 Macau silver coin marking the Macau-Taipa Bridge: a spanning bridge with a Chinese junk below, ringed by REPUBLICA PORTUGUESA and PONTE MACAU-TAIPA.
Circulation
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
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
Follis of Maximian
A large silvered-bronze follis of the emperor Maximian, introduced with Diocletian's coin reform of the Tetrarchy around AD 294.
Ancient
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
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
Kiautschou 5 Cents
A 1909 nickel 5 Cent coin of the German-leased Kiautschou Bay territory in China, pairing Chinese characters with the German imperial eagle.
Colonial
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
British Britannia Silver Coin
A modern UK bullion coin in fine silver, carrying a face value of 2 Pounds and the classic seated figure of Britannia with shield and trident.
Bullion
Ban Liang
A round bronze cash coin with a square central hole and two seal-script characters reading Ban Liang, from early imperial China.
Ancient
3 Roubles (First All-Russian Coins)
Soviet 1982 commemorative 3 Roubles honoring the first all-Russian coins, showing three historical 18th-century Russian coins with the state emblem reverse.
Commemorative
Follis of Diocletian
A large silver-washed bronze coin of the Tetrarchy, introduced by Diocletian's currency reform around AD 294 with a stern laureate portrait.
Ancient