Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Half Crown of William IV
A milled British silver half crown of King William IV, with the king's bare head facing right and a crowned royal shield of arms on the reverse.
Milled
20 Fillér
An early 20th-century Hungarian 20 fillér, a small base-metal coin showing the crowned Hungarian coat of arms and the FILLÉR minor denomination.
Modern
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
5 Aurar
Icelandic bronze 5 aurar of the Kingdom era, marked ÍSLAND with a crowned KONUNGDÓMUR ÍSLANDS reverse, struck 1926-1942.
World
Penny of Cnut
Anglo-Saxon silver penny of King Cnut (Canute), showing a diademed bust facing left with a cross-and-pellets reverse, struck c.1024-1030.
Medieval Coins
Gold Guinea
English gold coin of the Guinea denomination; the example shown bears the right-facing bust of Charles II with a crowned cruciform shield reverse dated 1668.
World Coins
Ecu of Louis XIV
A large silver crown of Louis XIV, the Sun King, showing his laureate or wigged bust facing left and a crowned French shield of fleur-de-lis, dated 1693.
Royal
Gold Sovereign
The British gold sovereign: a one-pound gold coin. This 1817 George III example shows a laureate bust and a crowned heraldic shield of the royal arms.
World
Antiochos the Child Tetradrachm
Silver Seleucid tetradrachm, c. 175 BC, with a young diademed head and a martial reverse figure with spear and shield.
Ancient
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
Una and the Lion Five Pounds
William Wyon's 1839 gold Five Pounds pairs a young Queen Victoria with Una guiding a lion — widely praised as one of the most beautiful British coins ever struck.
British Isles
India Half Rupee (Copper)
Copper coin bearing a lion design with the English legend 'HALF RUPEE INDIA' and the date 1947, dated to the year of Indian independence.
Modern India
British Third Farthing
A tiny 1844 Victoria copper coin: young left-facing queen's bust obverse, crowned value reverse. One of Britain's smallest denominations, struck for Malta.
Circulation
25 Pesetas (Franco)
Spain's common Franco-era 25 pesetas, a silvery copper-nickel coin bearing the national coat of arms and the value 25; dated 1957 but struck into the 1970s.
Modern
East India Company Quarter Anna
Large copper 1/4 anna of the East India Company dated 1835, with a heraldic lion-and-shield obverse and a laurel-wreath reverse.
British India
Sri Lanka 5 Rupees
Sri Lanka's 1999 copper-nickel five rupees marking the Cricket World Cup, showing the tournament trophy on one face and a batsman at the crease on the other.
South Asia
Maundy Money Penny
Tiny silver penny given as royal alms; this James II example (1687) shows a crowned bust and a crowned Roman numeral I reverse.
Maundy
Papua New Guinea 5 Kina
Papua New Guinea's 1975 five-kina coin: Queen Elizabeth II in profile on the obverse, a bird-of-paradise with the K5 denomination on the reverse.
Circulation
Cartwheel Twopence
The massive 1797 copper twopence of George III, famous for its broad raised rim and full ounce of copper, struck at Boulton's Soho Mint.
Milled
Shilling of Victoria
A milled sterling-silver British shilling of Queen Victoria, worth twelvepence, with the queen's head on the obverse and a crowned 'ONE SHILLING' reverse.
Milled
Edward VIII New Zealand Crown
A 1936-dated crown-sized piece pairing an Edward VIII profile with a New Zealand kiwi; a fantasy/novelty issue, not an officially circulated coin.
World Coins
British Bank Token
Copper token of the late George III period bearing the king's left-facing bust and a quartered royal-arms reverse, dated 1819.
British Isles
Godless Florin
Britain's first florin, struck only in 1849 and nicknamed "Godless" because it dropped "Dei Gratia" from Queen Victoria's titles.
British Isles
British Crown
A large George V silver crown of the 1927–1936 'wreath' type, showing the king's profile and a royal crown framed by an ornamental wreath.
British Isles