Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Spanish 8 Reales Portrait Dollar
The globally trusted "Spanish dollar" bearing a king's portrait, minted across Spain's vast colonial empire and so widely circulated it directly inspired the U.S. dollar sign and denomination.
European
Trajan Decius Antoninianus
Radiate coin of Trajan Decius, remembered for his empire-wide persecution of Christians and his death in battle against the Goths, and for a famous series honoring deified past emperors.
Ancient
Alexander the Great Tetradrachm
The widely circulated silver coin of Alexander the Great, showing Herakles wearing a lion skin on the obverse and an enthroned Zeus on the reverse, struck across his empire and for generations after his death.
Ancient
Rosa Americana Coinage
A British-issued colonial coinage for America under a patent granted to William Wood, showing a rose and King George I, that was widely rejected by colonists for its poor metal and overvaluation.
United States
Diocletian Follis
Large bronze follis of Diocletian, whose sweeping reforms ended the Crisis of the Third Century, established the Tetrarchy, and introduced this new standardized coin denomination in 294 AD.
Ancient
Tibetan Silver Tangka
The traditional silver coin denomination of Tibet, issued in many distinct types over roughly three centuries, from early Nepalese-struck coinage to native Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan issues.
Asian
Wood's Hibernia Halfpenny
A British copper coinage patented by William Wood for Ireland, controversially rejected there but widely circulated instead in colonial America, where large surplus shipments ended up in everyday trade.
United States
Maine Centennial Half Dollar
A 1920 U.S. commemorative half dollar issued for the 100th anniversary of Maine's statehood, featuring the state's coat of arms.
Commemorative
1878 Shield Nickel (Proof Only)
Another proof-only rarity in the Shield Nickel series, struck exclusively for collectors with no business-strike coinage issued for circulation that year.
United States
1976 Bicentennial Eisenhower Dollar
A dual-dated 1776-1976 Eisenhower dollar with a special reverse showing the Liberty Bell superimposed on the moon, issued for the U.S. Bicentennial.
United States
Massachusetts Cent (1787-1788)
State-issued copper coinage struck by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1787 and 1788, notable as the first official U.S. coinage to use the denomination 'cent'.
United States
British India Rupee (Silver)
Standardized silver rupee issued across British-ruled India from 1835 until independence, bearing the portrait of the reigning British monarch.
Asian
Mexican Silver Libertad
Mexico's widely collected silver bullion coin, sharing the Angel of Independence design with the Gold Libertad and issued in a range of weights since 1982.
Bullion
Somalian Silver Elephant (African Wildlife)
An annually redesigned silver bullion coin featuring an African elephant, issued in the name of Somalia but struck at a German state mint since 2004.
Africa & Oceania
Australian Silver Kookaburra
An annually redesigned Australian silver bullion coin issued since 1990, featuring a different depiction of the native kookaburra bird each year.
Bullion
German Bavaria Thaler
A large silver crown-sized coin issued by the Bavarian state, one of many German territorial thalers struck before German unification.
European
Bremen Thaler
A silver thaler of the free Hanseatic city of Bremen, typically featuring the city's key emblem, issued for centuries as an independent trading city's own coinage.
European
American Platinum Eagle
The United States Mint's official platinum bullion coin, issued since 1997 in four sizes, featuring the Statue of Liberty and a changing eagle reverse.
Bullion
1976 Montreal Olympics Silver Coin Series
A landmark seven-series program of sterling silver $5 and $10 coins issued by Canada to help finance and celebrate the 1976 Montreal Summer Olympics.
Commemorative
Spanish 5 Pesetas Silver (Duro)
Spain's classic large silver crown coin, popularly nicknamed the 'duro,' issued under several monarchs and a provisional republic in the late 19th century.
European
Lincoln Bicentennial Cent (2009)
A one-year series of four different reverse designs issued in 2009 to mark the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth and the centennial of the Lincoln cent.
Commemorative
Rwandan Silver African Wildlife
A modern bullion coin series issued under Rwandan sovereignty depicting various African animals, minted in Germany and produced in different subseries by animal theme.
Africa & Oceania
Crown
Large British coin traditionally worth five shillings, historically struck in silver and famed for elaborate designs, now issued mainly as a cupro-nickel commemorative.
British
Louisiana Purchase Gold Dollar Commemorative
A 1903 commemorative gold dollar issued for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, struck in two varieties featuring the portraits of Thomas Jefferson and William McKinley.
Commemorative