Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
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
Denarius of C. Papius Mutilus
Silver denarius bearing the name C PAPIUS MUTILUS, a Social War-era Italic type of c. 90 BC with a portrait bust and a horseman or chariot reverse.
Ancient
Byzantine Follis
Large bronze follis of the Byzantine Empire, this example under Constans II (from 641 AD), with an imperial portrait and a big M value mark topped by a cross.
Medieval
Half Sovereign
A small British 22-carat gold coin worth ten shillings; this example shows Queen Victoria's veiled, crowned Jubilee Head portrait and is dated 1887.
World Coins
Tetradrachm of Ptolemy I
Silver tetradrachm of Ptolemy I Soter of Egypt, c. 305-283 BC, with his diademed portrait and the Ptolemaic eagle standing on a thunderbolt.
Ancient
Denarius of Severus Alexander
Silver denarius of the emperor Severus Alexander (AD 222–235), with his laureate portrait and a Mars reverse dated to about AD 229.
Ancient
Follis of Constantius Chlorus
Large silvered-bronze follis of Constantius I (Chlorus), the Tetrarchic emperor and father of Constantine, showing his laureate portrait facing right.
Ancient
Byzantine Nummus of Tiberius Constantine
A small bronze coin of Byzantine emperor Tiberius II Constantine (AD 578-582), with an imperial portrait or inscription and a mark of value or monogram.
Ancient
Miliarensis of Constantius II
A late Roman silver miliarensis of Emperor Constantius II (AD 327–361), showing his diademed portrait and a standing reverse figure.
Ancient
Denarius of Nero
Silver denarius of the emperor Nero (AD 54-68), the last Julio-Claudian ruler, shown with a laureate portrait and a military-standards reverse.
Ancient
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
Irish Pistole
A rare hammered gold emergency coin of 1640s Ireland, marked with its weight in pennyweights and grains rather than a portrait, and rated as a pistole.
Hammered
Abbasi of Shah Sultan Husayn
A hand-struck Safavid silver abbasi of Shah Sultan Husayn, covered entirely in flowing Persian-Arabic calligraphy with jeweled borders and no portrait.
Persia / Iran
Empire 20 Pesos
A gold 20 pesos of the Second Mexican Empire, showing a bearded imperial portrait, the legend IMPERIO MEXICANO, and a crowned heraldic coat of arms.
Circulation
Aureus of Marcus Aurelius
Small Roman gold coin of the reign of Marcus Aurelius; this piece shows a diademed portrait and a standing deity or personification, dated to 163 AD.
Ancient Coins
Tanzania 500 Shillings
A modern base-metal circulating coin of Tanzania carrying a right-facing portrait long associated with the nation's founding president and a Kiswahili legend.
World
Lewis and Clark Exposition Dollar
A small U.S. gold dollar for the 1905 Portland exposition — unusual for carrying an explorer portrait on each side, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark.
Classic Commemorative
New Zealand Halfpenny
New Zealand's small bronze halfpenny, struck from 1940, with a royal portrait obverse and a Maori hei-tiki reverse. The coin shown is a 1940 George VI issue.
New Zealand
British Half Sovereign
A small 22-carat British gold coin worth ten shillings; the pictured example shows Queen Victoria's left-facing Young Head portrait, dated 1863.
British
Sierra Leone 20 Cents
A 1964 Sierra Leone 20 cents from the country's first decimal coinage, showing a portrait profile on one side and the national coat of arms with its lion on the other.
World
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
Denarius of C. Antius Restio
Silver Roman Republican denarius struck at Rome in 47 BC by the moneyer C. Antius Restio, pairing an ancestor's portrait with a striding figure and trophy.
Ancient
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
Hryvnia
Medieval silver money unit of Kievan Rus, circulating as cast silver ingots and weight-money rather than as a struck, portrait-bearing coin.
Medieval