Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Charles I Forty Pence
A hammered silver forty-pence piece of Charles I, showing his crowned armored bust and a crowned heraldic shield with the motto PRO REGE ET LEGE.
Hammered
Indian Paisa
A hand-struck copper paisa from early 19th-century India, its legends worn smooth by age and circulation. A humble base-metal coin of everyday commerce.
Princely & Presidency States
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
Marinid Gold Dinar
Aniconic Islamic gold dinar of the Marinid dynasty of Morocco, its faces filled with Arabic religious inscriptions framed by geometric border bands.
Medieval Islamic
Australian Sixpence
Small silver sixpence of the Commonwealth of Australia; this 1935 piece carries the crowned bust of King George V.
Australian
Groat of William IV
A small silver fourpenny piece of William IV (1836–1837), with a seated Britannia reverse; the coin that revived the modern British groat.
Milled
British West Africa 2 Shillings
A colonial copper-nickel two-shilling piece of British West Africa, showing King George VI and a palm-tree reverse.
World
Hungarian 9 Ducats
A large gold multiple-ducat piece of Hungary dated 1896, showing a bearded crowned figure with sword and shield and the crowned Hungarian arms.
Bullion/gold
Newfoundland Five Cents
Tiny sterling-silver 5-cent piece of the Dominion of Newfoundland; the 1929 issue bears King George V and a crowned denomination reverse.
Canadian & Provincial
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
Almoravid Gold Dinar
Pure-gold dinar of the Almoravid dynasty, struck in Islamic Spain and North Africa with concentric Arabic legends; this piece is dated 1116 CE.
Medieval Islamic
Roman Quadrans
A small Roman bronze quadrans, worth a quarter of an as, here a heavily corroded piece with a laureate head facing right.
Ancient
New Zealand Waitangi Crown
New Zealand's first and rarest crown, a 1935 silver five-shilling piece with a crowned George V obverse and the Treaty of Waitangi handshake reverse.
New Zealand
Crown of George IV
A milled silver crown of George IV, with a laureate head facing left and Pistrucci's St George and the dragon on the reverse; the photographed piece is dated 1822.
Milled
Westward Journey Nickel - Lewis and Clark Keelboat
A 2004 Jefferson five-cent piece from the Westward Journey series, its reverse showing the keelboat that carried the Lewis and Clark expedition upriver.
Nickel
Draped Bust Half Dime
An early U.S. silver five-cent piece showing a draped bust of Liberty ringed by stars; the tiny half dime was struck 1796–1805.
Half Dime
Flowing Hair Large Cent
An early U.S. copper cent showing Liberty with flowing hair and a liberty cap, ONE CENT in a wreath on the reverse; the photographed piece is dated 1794.
Large Cent
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
10 Cash (Republic)
A Republic of China bronze 10 Cash: a round machine-struck copper piece with a central ornament and characters on one face and a decorative inscribed reverse.
Cash Coin
2 Rigsdaler (Gold)
A gold striking of Denmark's 1863 2 rigsdaler, with the right-facing bust of Christian IX and the crowned royal arms — a rare early piece of his reign.
European
Henri V Five Francs
An 1831 French five-franc piece struck for the Legitimist pretender Henri V, showing his young profile and the royal fleur-de-lis shield.
World
Liberty Head Half Eagle
United States $5 gold coin with a left-facing Liberty head ringed by stars and a spread-winged eagle reverse; the pictured piece is dated 1838.
United States
Shield Nickel
The first U.S. five-cent piece struck in copper-nickel, showing a Union shield on the obverse and a large numeral 5 on the reverse, made 1866–1883.
Nickel Five Cent
Denarius of Trajan
Silver denarius of the emperor Trajan (98–117 AD), showing his laureate bust and, on this piece, Libertas standing with patera and rod.
Ancient