Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
German Prussia 20 Mark Gold
The standard gold coin of Prussia within the newly unified German Empire, featuring successive Prussian kings and forming a key part of the empire's gold mark system.
European
Spanish Peseta
The peseta was Spain's national currency for over 130 years, evolving from silver coinage under a provisional 19th-century government to copper-nickel coins used until the euro replaced it in 2002.
European
50 Euro Cent Coin
A gold-colored circulating euro coin worth half a euro, struck in a copper-based Nordic gold alloy and easily recognized by its distinctive scalloped-edge shape and national obverse design.
European
Dutch Rijksdaalder
A historic Dutch silver trade coin dating to the Dutch Republic, later continued as a denomination of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
European
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
Norwegian Krone
The krone became Norway's national currency in 1875 upon joining the Scandinavian Monetary Union, and it has remained Norway's currency ever since, featuring the reigning monarch's portrait through the decades.
European
Norwegian Speciedaler
Norway's principal silver coin from the establishment of its independent currency in 1816 until the krone reform of the 1870s.
European
Swedish Krona
The krona has been Sweden's national currency since 1873, originally struck in silver as part of the Scandinavian Monetary Union and today issued in base metals bearing the reigning monarch's portrait.
European
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
Vatican Euro Coins
Official euro coinage of the world's smallest sovereign state, struck in very limited quantities and highly sought after by euro coin collectors worldwide.
European
Swedish Riksdaler
Sweden's traditional silver dollar denomination, used for roughly two centuries before being replaced by the krona in the 1870s currency reform.
European
Italian Scudo (Papal States)
A large silver coin issued by the Papal States under successive popes, blending religious imagery with the temporal authority of the papacy.
European
Spanish 20 Pesetas Gold (Alfonso XII)
Spain's standard gold coin of the Latin Monetary Union era, struck under King Alfonso XII following the restoration of the Spanish monarchy in the 1870s.
European
French Ecu (Louis d'Argent)
France's principal large silver coin of the pre-revolutionary era, bearing the reigning king's portrait, used as the standard silver crown-sized coin for over a century before decimalization.
European
Spanish 4 Reales
A mid-value denomination of Spain's traditional real-based coinage, struck for centuries in both Spain and its American colonies.
European
1967 Centennial Gold $20 Coin
A gold $20 coin struck to mark the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation in 1967, sold mainly to collectors as part of the country's centennial commemorative coinage.
Commemorative
French 2 Francs (Silver)
A workhorse French silver denomination struck across the Napoleonic, Restoration, and Republican eras, later famous for the Semeuse (Sower) design.
European
1953 Coronation Voyageur Dollar
The first Canadian silver dollar of Queen Elizabeth II's reign, issued in her coronation year, featuring the classic Voyageur canoe reverse and known for two collectible obverse varieties.
Canadian
Italian 100 Lire Gold
The largest gold denomination of the Kingdom of Italy's Latin Monetary Union coinage, struck under Vittorio Emanuele II and Umberto I in relatively limited numbers.
European
French Napoleon 20 Francs Gold
France's standard 19th-century gold coin, first struck under Napoleon I and continued under later rulers and the Republic, giving rise to the enduring nickname "Napoleon" for any 20-franc gold coin.
European
Portuguese Real
Portugal's centuries-old pre-decimal currency unit, used from the medieval era until the 1911 introduction of the escudo, also struck for Brazil and other colonies.
European
German Empire 20 Mark Gold (Wilhelm II)
The standard gold coin of the German Empire under Kaiser Wilhelm II, struck at multiple state mints and widely collected for its imperial portrait and eagle reverse.
European
Italian 10 Lire (Silver)
Kingdom of Italy silver 10 Lire coin, best known for the 1926–1930 'Biga' type showing a two-horse chariot, struck under Vittorio Emanuele III.
European
Swiss 5 Francs Silver
The Swiss 5 Francs was Switzerland's largest circulating silver coin for over a century, featuring the standing figure of Helvetia, and remains a favorite among collectors of European silver crowns.
European
Netherlands Rijksdaalder Gulden
The 2.5 guilder coin of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, carrying forward the historic rijksdaalder name through the monarchy era until the euro's adoption.
European
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
French 40 Francs Gold (Napoleon)
An early gold coin of Napoleon Bonaparte as First Consul and later Emperor, struck under France's new decimal franc system.
European
Spanish Gold Escudo (Doubloon)
The gold denomination of the Spanish Empire, whose larger multiples became famous as "doubloons," struck both in Spain and across its American colonial mints for centuries.
European
French 100 Francs Gold (Angel/Genius)
A large French gold coin of the Third Republic featuring an allegorical winged genius writing the constitution, often called the 'Angel' by collectors.
European
George V Twenty-Five Cents (silver)
Canada's silver twenty-five-cent coin struck under King George V, a series notable for its famous 1921 key date and a rare 1936 emergency dot variety.
Canadian
German 3 Mark Silver
A large silver coin of Imperial Germany, issued by the various constituent states with distinct rulers' portraits and commemorative designs.
European
1958 British Columbia Totem Pole Dollar
A commemorative Canadian silver dollar marking the centennial of the founding of the Colony of British Columbia in 1858, its reverse featuring a totem pole design.
Canadian
French Franc Germinal
Not a single coin but the bimetallic monetary standard fixed by Napoleon's 1803 law, defining the franc's silver and gold content for over a century.
European
1973 RCMP Centennial Dollar
A commemorative Canadian dollar marking the centennial of the founding of the North-West Mounted Police, forerunner of the RCMP, showing a mounted officer on the reverse.
Canadian
Danish Krone
The krone has been Denmark's national currency unit since 1875, issued in silver historically and base metals today, consistently featuring the reigning Danish monarch's portrait or monogram.
European
1939 Royal Visit Silver Dollar (Parliament)
A commemorative Canadian silver dollar marking the 1939 royal tour of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, with the Parliament Buildings depicted on the reverse.
Canadian
Austrian 20 Corona Gold
A compact gold coin of the Austro-Hungarian Empire depicting Emperor Franz Joseph I, widely available today as an accessible historic gold piece.
European
1935 George V Silver Jubilee Dollar (Voyageur)
Canada's first-ever silver dollar, struck in 1935 to mark King George V's Silver Jubilee, introducing the famous Voyageur canoe reverse design.
Canadian
Italian 5 Lire Silver
The silver 5 Lire was the largest circulating silver coin of the newly unified Kingdom of Italy, featuring the portraits of its early kings and the national eagle, and remains a favorite of Italian collectors.
European
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
Swiss Franc (Helvetia Seated)
Switzerland's classic 19th-century silver coinage depicting a seated figure of Helvetia, the female personification of the Swiss nation.
European
Coat of Arms Fifty Cents (Elizabeth II)
Canada's modern fifty-cent piece, showing the Canadian coat of arms on the reverse since 1959 under successive obverse portraits of Queen Elizabeth II and, later, King Charles III.
Canadian
French Louis d'Or
The Louis d'Or was the principal gold coin of the French monarchy for over 150 years, named after the kings Louis who issued it, and struck until the eve of the Revolution.
European
1921 Fifty Cents (King of Canadian Coins)
Canada's most famous rarity, the 1921 fifty-cent piece survives in only a small number of known examples after most of its mintage was melted, earning it the nickname King of Canadian Coins.
Canadian
Saxony Thaler
Saxony was one of the earliest and most prolific issuers of thalers, with the electorate and later kingdom producing large silver coins from the 16th century until German unification.
European
George V Fifty Cents
Canada's fifty-cent silver coin issued under King George V, spanning a reduction in silver fineness in 1920 and including the famously rare 1921 date.
Canadian
Austrian Gold Ducat
A traditional high-purity Austrian gold trade coin with centuries of history, still struck today by the Austrian Mint as an official restrike permanently dated 1915.
European
1967 Bobcat Centennial Quarter
A one-year-only Canadian quarter struck for the 1967 Centennial of Confederation, featuring a bobcat on the reverse instead of the usual caribou.
Canadian