Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Double Rupi
A large Afsharid silver coin of Nader Shah, the double rupi, dated AH 1151 and covered in flowing Persian calligraphy and ornamental scrollwork.
Historic
Canadian One Cent
Bronze Canadian large cent with a maple-leaf wreath reverse; the 1911 issue is the famous first-year 'Godless' cent lacking DEI GRATIA.
Canadian & Provincial
Alexander the Great Gold Quarter Stater
A small gold fraction of the Alexander the Great coinage, showing the head of Heracles and an eagle perched on a thunderbolt, the attributes of Zeus.
Ancient
Newfoundland One Cent
Bronze large cent of the colony of Newfoundland; the example shown is a 1904 issue with Edward VII's profile and a wreath reverse.
Canadian & Provincial
Burma One Kyat (Mindon Min)
Silver kyat of King Mindon Min's Burma, showing the royal peacock with spread tail on the obverse and the denomination within a wreath on the reverse.
Southeast Asia
Halve Rijksdaalder van Leicester
Silver half rijksdaalder of the Leicester type, struck in the rebelling Dutch provinces, showing an armored bust and a split provincial shield.
Early Modern
Macedonian Silver Tetradrachm
Large silver tetradrachm of ancient Macedon in the Alexander type, c. 188-170 BC, with the head of Heracles in a lion skin and Zeus enthroned holding an eagle.
Ancient
10 Yen (Gold)
A Japanese gold 10 Yen of the Meiji era, its obverse a radiant chrysanthemum sunburst, its reverse a wreath framing imperial crests; dated Meiji 30 (1897).
Circulation
Capped Bust Half Dime
A small early U.S. silver five-cent piece showing Liberty in a Phrygian cap and a shielded eagle reverse, struck at Philadelphia from 1829 to 1837.
Half Dime
Matapan (Serbian imitation)
A medieval Serbian coin modeled on the Venetian matapan (grosso), showing standing figures on the obverse and a cross on the reverse.
Medieval
4 Escudos
Spanish Bourbon gold 4 Escudos of the 1780s, with an armored royal bust facing right and a crowned coat of arms on the reverse.
Early Modern
Australian Sovereign
22-carat gold sovereign struck at Australian branch mints; the 1855 Sydney Mint issue was the country's first gold coin.
Australian
Tealby Penny
Silver penny of Henry II, the Tealby or Cross-and-Crosslets type, with a crowned royal bust and a voided cross bearing small crosslets in its angles.
Medieval Coins
Bronze Coin of Septimius Severus (Tyre)
Roman provincial bronze struck at Tyre (Phoenicia) under Septimius Severus, 193-211 AD, with the emperor's bust on the obverse and a temple or deity reverse.
Ancient
Classic Head Half Cent
A small U.S. copper half cent of 1809–1836 showing Liberty in a beaded headband ringed by stars, with a plain wreath and HALF CENT on the reverse.
Half Cent
Agathokles Commemorative Tetradrachm for Alexander the Great
Silver tetradrachm of Agathokles of Syracuse, c. 310-300 BC, struck in the Alexander tradition with a bearded head and an enthroned deity reverse.
Ancient
Japanese 20 Yen
Early Meiji-era Japanese gold coin showing a dragon among clouds on one side and a floral design with the 20 yen denomination on the other.
World Coins
5 Roubles (Alexander III)
An Imperial Russian gold 5 Roubles of Alexander III, showing the tsar's bearded profile and the crowned double-headed eagle, struck in the late 1880s.
Modern
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
Cambodia One Franc
A mid-20th-century one-franc coin of the Kingdom of Cambodia, its obverse bearing a royal Norodom profile and its reverse a heraldic coat of arms.
Southeast Asia
Roman Sestertius (Uncertain Emperor)
A large Roman imperial sestertius in bronze or orichalcum, heavily patinated with a bearded emperor's portrait and a reverse too worn to identify.
Ancient
Hessen-Homburg Kreuzer
A small silver 1 Kreuzer of the Landgraviate of Hessen-Homburg, with a crowned arms shield and a dated 1 KREUZER value in a laurel wreath.
German States
Vietnam 2 Tien - Bao Dai
A gold 2 Tien of Vietnam's last emperor, Bao Dai (1926-1945), its face bearing a radiant sun motif and Chinese-Vietnamese court inscriptions.
Southeast Asia
Australian Halfpenny
Small bronze pre-decimal Australian half penny; the George VI kangaroo type shown here was struck through the early 1950s.
Australian