Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
China 10 Yuan Temple of Heaven
A modern Chinese silver 10 Yuan commemorative bearing the Temple of Heaven's Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, dated 1996.
World
China Panda Gold Coin
A modern Chinese gold bullion coin with the Temple of Heaven on one side and a giant panda on the other; this 2016 issue is a 30-gram gold piece.
Bullion
Macao 100 Patacas Return to China Commemorative
A 1999 Macao 100 patacas commemorative marking the return to China: a Portuguese ship with a gold center on one side, the Macao coat of arms on the other.
Commemorative
Republic 1 Fen
A holed copper 1 fen of Republican China, showing a numeral 1 with Chinese characters on one side and flowering plum blossoms on the other, around a central square-ish hole.
Circulation
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
Shanxi 2 Fen
A holed Republic-era Chinese copper 2 Fen struck for Shanxi Province, dated 1931, with a numeral 2 and Chinese legends around a central hole.
Circulation
Yuan Shikai Dollar
A silver one-yuan dollar of the early Chinese Republic bearing the left-facing bust of Yuan Shikai, nicknamed the "Fatman Dollar" by collectors.
Circulation
British Trade Dollar
British silver trade dollar for Far East commerce, with seated Britannia holding a trident and shield and a Chinese dragon reverse.
Dollar
Yunnan 20 Cents
A 1932 provincial silver 20 Cents from Yunnan, China, with a radiant sun and rays on one face and central Chinese value characters framed by ornament on the other.
Circulation
Shansi Arsenal 1 Fen
A holed copper 1 Fen struck by the Shansi Arsenal in 1928, with Chinese inscriptions and numeral '1' around a central square hole.
Circulation
Junk Dollar
China's Republic-era silver dollar with Sun Yat-sen facing left and a Chinese junk under sail on the reverse; the pictured coin is Year 23 (1934).
Circulation
Warring States Knife Coin
A cast bronze knife coin (dao bi) of China's Warring States period, shaped like a small blade with a ringed handle and cast inscriptions.
Ancient
Wang Mang Spade Money
A cast bronze spade-shaped coin of the Xin Dynasty, issued under the reformer Wang Mang, its flat blade bearing raised Chinese inscriptions.
Ancient
Guangdong 20 Cents
A silver 20-cent coin of Kwangtung (Guangdong) province, struck under the Guangxu Emperor with a coiled dragon on one side and Chinese legends on the other.
Circulation
Xuantong Yuanbao 7 Mace 2 Candareens
A late Qing silver dollar-size coin of the Xuantong era (1909-1911), reading 宣統元寶 on the obverse with a Chinese dragon on the reverse.
Circulation
Wu Zhu Cash
A round Han-dynasty bronze cash coin with a central square hole and two seal-script characters, Wu Zhu, naming its weight of five zhu.
Cash Coin
Xuantong Yuanbao 20 Cents
A small late-Qing silver 20-cent coin with a Western-style dragon, the English legend FIRST YEAR OF HSUAN TUNG, and Chinese characters reading Xuantong Yuanbao.
Circulation
Qian Feng Quan Bao
A round bronze Tang cash coin with a square center hole, cast under Emperor Gaozong in the short-lived Qianfeng era and worth ten ordinary cash.
Cash Coin
Kai Yuan Tong Bao
A Tang-dynasty Chinese bronze cash coin with the four seal-script characters Kai Yuan Tong Bao around a central square hole.
Cash Coin
Qi State Knife Coin
A cast bronze knife-shaped coin of the ancient state of Qi, with Chinese characters running down the curved blade and a ringed handle terminal.
Ancient
Guangxu Yuanbao Dollar
A crown-sized silver dragon dollar of Qing China inscribed 光緒元寶 (Guangxu Yuanbao), with a coiled dragon reverse and a provincial mint inscription; this piece dated 1905.
Circulation
Guangxu Yuanbao 50 Cents
A Qing-dynasty silver half-dollar bearing the legend Guangxu Yuanbao and a coiled dragon, struck by Chinese provincial mints during the Guangxu Emperor's reign.
Circulation
Daoguang Tongbao
A round Chinese bronze cash coin with a square center hole, cast under the Qing emperor Daoguang; this example bears the Bao Quan mint mark.
Cash Coin
Ho-Nan 100 Cash
A large struck bronze 100-cash coin of Henan Province from Republican China, with ornate Chinese characters on one face and a decorative pattern on the other.
Cash Coin