Coin Encyclopedia
Search and identify coins from around the world — with country, denomination, metal, mint, history, and how to tell them apart.
Ottoman Silver Akce
A tiny silver coin that served as the basic everyday currency unit of the Ottoman Empire for centuries, gradually shrinking in size and silver content as inflation took hold.
World
Ottoman Para
A small fractional Ottoman coin, historically 1/40 of a kurus, struck for centuries in varying metals as the empire's lowest everyday denomination.
World
Ottoman Rashidi Kurus
A silver kurus variety struck to a distinct local standard within the Ottoman Arabian provinces, less standardized and less commonly catalogued than the empire's main Constantinople coinage.
World
Ottoman 20 Kurus
Ottoman silver coin denominated in kuruş, bearing the sultan's ornate calligraphic tughra rather than a portrait, in keeping with Islamic artistic tradition.
World
Ottoman Kurus (Piastre)
The standard Ottoman monetary unit for centuries, struck in silver or base metal bearing the sultan's tughra, later becoming a subunit of the Ottoman lira after 1844.
World
Chinese Empire Silver Dollar (Hsuan Tung Dragon)
A late Qing dynasty silver dollar issued during the brief Hsuan Tung (Xuantong) reign of the last emperor, featuring an imperial dragon design.
Asian
Korean 1 Yang Silver (Joseon/Great Han Empire)
Silver 1 Yang coin from Korea's late Joseon currency reform of the 1890s, part of the kingdom's first modern, machine-struck decimal coinage.
Asian
Egyptian Qirsh (Muhammad Ali Era)
Silver-billon piastre struck in Egypt under Muhammad Ali Pasha in the name of the Ottoman Sultan, reflecting Egypt's growing autonomy within the empire.
Africa & Oceania
German Empire 5 Mark
A large silver crown of Imperial Germany bearing the portrait or arms of individual constituent states, unified under a common eagle reverse after German unification in 1871.
European
Parthian Silver Drachm
Long-running silver coin of the Parthian Empire, showing the king's portrait on the obverse and the dynasty's founder as a seated archer on the reverse.
Ancient
Sassanian Silver Drachm
The standard silver coin of the Sasanian Persian Empire, featuring an elaborately crowned king's portrait and a Zoroastrian fire altar with attendants, struck for over four centuries.
Ancient
Colombian Peso Silver
Colombia's traditional silver dollar-sized coin, struck across different eras of the country's political evolution, from Nueva Granada through the modern Republic of Colombia.
Latin American
German 3 Mark Silver
A large silver coin of Imperial Germany, issued by the various constituent states with distinct rulers' portraits and commemorative designs.
European
Mughal Silver Rupee (Akbar)
A silver rupee struck under Emperor Akbar, who standardized the denomination's weight and calligraphic design, establishing a coin type that shaped Indian currency for centuries.
Asian
Egyptian 10 Piastres (silver)
A workhorse silver coin of Khedival, Sultanate, and Kingdom-era Egypt, one-tenth of a pound and commonly found in worn circulated grades from decades of daily use.
Africa & Oceania
Guptas 'Horseman' Silver Coin
Silver coin of the Gupta Empire showing the king on horseback, struck after Gupta conquest of western India in imitation of earlier Western Kshatrapa silver coinage.
Ancient
Brazilian 2000 Reis Silver
The largest common silver coin of the Brazilian Empire, bearing the portrait of Emperor Pedro II across several design types spanning his long reign.
Latin American
Persian Sassanid Silver Drachm
The standard silver coin of the Sasanian Persian Empire, showing an elaborately crowned royal bust and a Zoroastrian fire altar with attendants, struck for over four centuries.
Ancient
Carolingian Silver Denier (Charlemagne)
Standardized silver penny introduced under Charlemagne's monetary reform, forming the template for medieval European currency for centuries afterward.
European
Brazilian 960 Reis Silver
A silver crown-sized coin struck in Brazil under Prince Regent João and later Pedro I, famous for often being overstruck directly on circulating Spanish colonial 8-reales pieces.
Latin American
German 5 Mark Silver (Kaiserreich)
The 5 Mark was the largest circulating silver coin of the German Empire, issued by numerous constituent states and free cities, each with its own portrait or design under a common imperial system.
European
George V Five Cents (silver)
The last era of Canadian silver five-cent coins, struck under King George V until nickel replaced silver in 1922, including the legendary rarity of the 1921 date.
Canadian
French 2 Francs (Silver)
A workhorse French silver denomination struck across the Napoleonic, Restoration, and Republican eras, later famous for the Semeuse (Sower) design.
European
Japanese 1 Yen Silver Coin
Japan's principal large silver coin of the Meiji era, featuring a coiled dragon, that became a major East Asian trade coin and a symbol of Japan's rapid currency modernization.
Asian