Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Licinius Follis
Bronze follis of Licinius, the last rival emperor to challenge Constantine the Great before his defeat and the reunification of the Roman Empire under Constantinian rule in 324 AD.
Ancient
Theodosius I Solidus
A gold solidus of Theodosius I, the last emperor to rule a united Roman Empire and the ruler who made Nicene Christianity the state religion.
Ancient
Ecuador Sucre Silver
Ecuador's historic silver one-sucre coin, named after independence hero Antonio Jose de Sucre, circulated for decades before Ecuador's currency was eventually replaced by the US dollar.
Latin American
Seljuk Copper Fals
Base-metal copper coin of everyday commerce in the Seljuk Turkish world, notable for unusually rich figural imagery such as lions, suns, and double-headed eagles.
Asian
Spanish Colonial Cob (Macuquina)
Crude, irregularly shaped hand-struck coins produced at Spanish colonial mints in the Americas for over two centuries, forming the basis of the famous 'pieces of eight' that circulated worldwide.
Latin American
Chinese Silver Dragon Dollar (Kwangtung Province)
One of China's earliest machine-struck silver dollars, produced by Kwangtung province in the late Qing dynasty with an imperial dragon design, a pioneering issue other provinces soon imitated.
Asian
Maximinus Thrax Denarius
Silver denarius of Maximinus Thrax, the first Roman emperor risen from the common soldiery rather than the senatorial class, ruling amid the onset of the Crisis of the Third Century.
Ancient
1804 Draped Bust Silver Dollar
Extraordinarily rare U.S. dollar known as "The King of American Coins," actually struck decades after its 1804 date for diplomatic gift sets and later collectors, with only 15 known examples.
United States
Austrian Thaler (Joseph II)
A silver thaler bearing the portrait of Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II, struck in the late 18th century and, like the more famous Maria Theresa thaler, later restruck for use in Levant and African trade.
European
Japanese Wado Kaichin
Japan's earliest officially minted coin, cast in 708 AD in imitation of Tang Chinese cash, with a round shape and square center hole.
Asian
Lydian Lion Trite (Electrum)
An early electrum coin from the Kingdom of Lydia bearing a roaring lion's head, among the very earliest coins struck anywhere in the world.
Ancient
1911 Canadian Silver Dollar (Pattern)
An extraordinarily rare 1911 trial striking exploring a Canadian silver dollar decades before the denomination was actually introduced, with only a handful of specimens known.
Canadian
1804 Draped Bust Dollar
One of the most famous rarities in American numismatics, a silver dollar dated 1804 but actually struck decades later, with only 15 known examples.
United States
Chinese Silver Panda
China's annual silver bullion coin, issued since 1983 with a new panda design nearly every year, popular with both silver stackers and dedicated Panda date-set collectors.
Bullion
Gold Panda (China)
China's flagship gold bullion coin, issued since 1982 with a different panda design nearly every year, making the series a favorite among both bullion buyers and date-and-design collectors.
Bullion
English Angel
A gold coin depicting the Archangel Michael slaying a dragon, issued for nearly two centuries and later famous for its use as a royal 'touch-piece' for the healing ceremony of the King's Evil.
British
Byzantine Electrum Aspron Trachy (Scyphate)
A distinctive cup-shaped Byzantine coin struck in electrum after Alexios I Komnenos's currency reform, featuring religious imagery and a concave scyphate flan.
Ancient
British Gold Britannia
The United Kingdom's flagship gold bullion coin, issued by the Royal Mint since 1987, featuring the classical figure of Britannia and enjoying capital gains tax exemption for UK residents as legal tender.
Bullion
Ottoman Para
A small fractional Ottoman coin, historically 1/40 of a kurus, struck for centuries in varying metals as the empire's lowest everyday denomination.
World
Portuguese Escudo
Portugal's national currency unit from the 1911 decimal reform, following the fall of the monarchy, until the Euro replaced it in the early 2000s.
European
Chinese Knife Money (Ming Dao)
An ancient Chinese bronze currency cast in the shape of a knife, bearing a character often read as "Ming" on its blade, used mainly by the northern state of Yan before round coinage prevailed.
Asian
Mughal Gold Mohur
The premier gold coin of the Mughal Empire, prized for its bold Persian calligraphy, occasional portraiture, and the wealth and artistry of Mughal court culture.
Asian
Double Sovereign
A British gold coin worth two pounds, twice the value of the standard sovereign, struck intermittently since the nineteenth century for commemorative and bullion purposes.
British
Gupta Empire Gold Dinar
Richly detailed gold coins of India's classical Gupta Empire, depicting kings as archers, horsemen, or lyrists, and often paired with a goddess on the reverse.
Ancient