Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Pine Tree Shilling
Silver shilling from the Boston mint, struck about 1667–1674 but dated 1652, showing a pine tree beside the legend MASSACHUSETTS.
Colonial
Philip II Tetradrachm
A large silver coin of the Macedonian kingdom showing the laureate head of Zeus and a youthful horseman, struck under and after Philip II.
Ancient
Tetradrachm of Ptolemy XII
Silver tetradrachm struck under Ptolemy XII of Egypt, father of Cleopatra VII, bearing a diademed royal Ptolemaic head and the dynasty's eagle-on-thunderbolt reverse.
Ancient
Penny of Alfred the Great
Hand-struck silver penny of Alfred the Great of Wessex, showing a right-facing royal bust and a cross-based reverse with a moneyer's inscription.
Medieval Coins
Medieval Penny of Edward III
A hammered silver penny of Edward III (1327–1377): a crowned facing royal bust on one side and a long cross with pellets on the other.
British Isles
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
Tetradrachm of Ptolemy IV
Silver tetradrachm of Ptolemy IV Philopator, 221-204 BC, with the jugate busts of Sarapis and Isis on the obverse and an eagle on a thunderbolt on the reverse.
Ancient
Denarius of Antoninus Pius
Silver denarius of the Roman emperor Antoninus Pius (138–161 AD), with his laureate portrait facing right and a legend-and-figure reverse.
Ancient
Charles I Twenty Pence
A small hammered silver twenty-pence coin of Charles I, showing his crowned profile and a heraldic reverse with rose and thistle badges.
Hammered
Three Graces Pattern Crown
A celebrated 1817 silver pattern crown of George III, engraved by William Wyon and never issued for circulation — a prized masterpiece of British coinage.
Pattern
Corinth Pegasos Stater
Classical silver stater of Corinth showing the winged horse Pegasos on the obverse and a helmeted head of Athena on the reverse.
Ancient
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
Prinsendaalder (Rijksdaalder)
A large silver rijksdaalder of the Dutch Republic showing an armored bust with sword, popularly named the Prinsendaalder after the Prince of Orange.
Early Modern
Philippines 25 Centavos
Silvery base-metal 25 centavos of the young Republic of the Philippines, dated 1958: a standing figure with a liberty torch and the Republic's sunburst coat of arms.
Southeast Asia
Philippines 20 Centavos
A small wartime silver 20 centavos of the Commonwealth-era Philippines: a standing Liberty figure and Mayon volcano, with an eagle over a shield on the reverse.
Southeast Asia
Denarius of the Pompeia Family
Silver Roman Republican denarius of the Pompeia family, with a male portrait head and a Victory driving a chariot on the reverse.
Ancient
Brutus & Plaetorius Denarius
The silver EID MAR denarius: M. Junius Brutus on the obverse, a Phrygian cap between two daggers and EID MAR on the reverse, struck 42 BC.
Ancient
Denarius of C. Papius Mutilus
Silver denarius bearing the name C PAPIUS MUTILUS, a Social War-era Italic type of c. 90 BC with a portrait bust and a horseman or chariot reverse.
Ancient
Denarius of Cn. Pompeius Magnus
Silver Roman Republican denarius of the Pompeian party (46–45 BC), with a bearded portrait of Pompey the Great and a galley reverse reading PRO COS.
Ancient
Massachusetts Shilling (1 Shilling 6 Pence)
A colonial-era Massachusetts silver piece valued at one shilling and sixpence, joining a pine-tree obverse with a rising-sun reverse and the date 1779.
Colonial
Denarius of Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius
Roman silver denarius of Antoninus Pius (138–161 AD), a dynastic type showing the emperor and the two young Caesars, Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.
Ancient
Denarius of Tiberius (Tribute Penny)
Silver denarius of Emperor Tiberius (14–37 AD), obverse his laureate head, reverse a seated female figure — the famous "Tribute Penny" of the Gospels.
Ancient
500 Yen Japanese Immigration Commemorative
A 2008 Japanese 500 yen commemorative marking 100 years of Japanese immigration to Brazil, with two figures on one side and a ship on the other.
Commemorative
Flowing Hair Stella
An 1879 U.S. $4 gold pattern coin with a flowing-hair Liberty obverse and a large-star "ONE STELLA" reverse; famous rarity, never circulated.
Stella