Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
20 Kroner
Danish aluminum-bronze 20 Kroner of 1990 honoring Queen Margrethe II, with a crown over a marguerite daisy and the dates 1940 and 1990.
Modern
Tealby Penny
Silver penny of Henry II, the Tealby or Cross-and-Crosslets type, with a crowned royal bust and a voided cross bearing small crosslets in its angles.
Medieval Coins
Irish Gun Money Halfcrown (30 Pence)
Emergency base-metal halfcrown struck for James II in Ireland during 1689–1690, valued at 30 pence and carrying his portrait and, on many issues, the month of striking.
Emergency Coinage
60 Kreuzer Guldiner
A gold 60 Kreuzer Guldiner of the Holy Roman Empire dated 1568, showing Emperor Maximilian II in plumed armor in right profile.
German States
Ottoman Manghir
The manghir was the small copper coin of the Ottoman Empire, used for everyday change; this example bears a tughra and dates to the reign of Murad II.
Medieval Islamic
Canadian Five Cents (Nickel)
Canada's five-cent 'nickel,' with G.E. Kruger Gray's beaver reverse. This 1987 example pairs the beaver with an Elizabeth II portrait.
Canadian & Provincial
Silver Rupee of Bhopal State
Silver rupee of the princely state of Bhopal, struck at the Daulatgarh mint in the name of Mughal emperor Muhammad Akbar II, marked by a trident symbol.
Princely & Presidency States
Egypt 20 Qirsh
The 20 qirsh was Egypt's largest silver coin under the Khedivate, bearing the Ottoman sultan's tughra; this example dates to 1905.
World
Short Cross Penny
Hammered silver penny of Henry II showing a crowned facing-left royal portrait and a cross-crosslet (cross-and-crosslets) reverse.
Medieval Coins
500 Reis
A Portuguese silver 500 Reis of Queen Maria II, with her left-facing draped bust on the obverse and a crowned coat of arms on the reverse.
Modern
British Decimal Half Penny
The smallest UK decimal coin, a tiny bronze half-penny introduced with decimalisation in 1971, bearing a crown reverse and the Machin portrait of Elizabeth II.
British Isles
American Plantations Token
A 1688 tin token struck under James II for England's American colonies, valued at 1/24 of a Spanish real — the first regal-authorized coinage for British America.
Colonial
Tymf
A debased Polish silver coin of 1663 tariffed at 30 groszy, famous for a Latin motto declaring the state's safety worth more than the metal.
Early Modern
Parthian Drachm
Silver drachm of the Parthian (Arsacid) Empire, pairing a bearded royal profile with a seated archer holding a bow, struck in the era of Mithradates II.
Ancient
Canadian Ten Cents
Small silver Canadian dime with the Bluenose schooner reverse and an early Queen Elizabeth II portrait; the pictured coin is dated 1955.
Canadian & Provincial
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
50 Öre (Silver)
A small Swedish silver 50 ore of the Oscar II era, dated 1898, with the value and date in a laurel wreath on one side and the crowned Swedish arms on the other.
Modern
British Honduras 10 Cents
A silver-colored colonial 10 cents of British Honduras, with the Queen's portrait on the obverse and a plain 10 CENTS legend around BRITISH HONDURAS and the date.
Colonial
Irish Gun Money Shilling
A base-metal Irish emergency shilling struck for James II in 1689-1690, with his laureate bust and a crowned reverse dated by month, here October 1689.
Emergency Coinage
1 Kopeck
Small copper 1 Kopeck of Imperial Russia dated 1908, with the value in a wreath on one side and the crowned double-headed eagle on the other.
Modern
Tetradrachm of Ptolemy VIII
Silver tetradrachm of Ptolemy VIII of Egypt, c. 170-116 BC, with a diademed royal head on the obverse and an eagle on a thunderbolt reverse.
Ancient
Quarter Farthing
Tiny copper coin of Queen Victoria worth one-sixteenth of a penny, struck for use in Ceylon; the smallest-value British denomination ever made.
British Isles
Victoria Maundy Twopence
A tiny sterling-silver ceremonial coin from a Royal Maundy set. This 1845 example shows Victoria's young head and a crowned 2 in a wreath.
British Isles
Victoria Maundy Fourpence
A tiny sterling-silver ceremonial coin from a royal Maundy set. This 1889 example shows Victoria's crowned Jubilee Head and a crowned '4' in a wreath.
British Isles