Coin Collecting Glossary

A

Alloy

A mixture of two or more metals. Most circulating "copper" coins today are actually copper-plated steel or a bronze alloy (copper + tin + zinc).

Anvil die

The lower of the two dies used to strike a coin — held stationary in the press while the hammer die descends. Usually carries the reverse design.

Assay

Testing of a metal to determine its purity and composition. British gold bullion coins carry an assay mark verifying their fineness.

B

Billon

A low-purity silver alloy (less than .500 silver) used in medieval and some Victorian-era minor coins.

Bimetallic

A coin made of two different metals, usually with a central disc inside a ring of a contrasting colour. The UK £2 (1997–) is the classic example.

Brilliant Uncirculated (BU)

A coin with full original mint lustre, never circulated. Roughly MS-63 to MS-65 on the Sheldon scale. The Royal Mint sells annual BU sets in coloured folders.

Bullion

Precious-metal coins or bars valued primarily for their metal content rather than numismatic rarity. The gold Britannia and US Gold Eagle are bullion coins.

C

Cameo

A contrast effect on proof coins where the raised design appears frosted against a mirror-like field. Deep Cameo (DCAM) is the strongest contrast grade.

Circulation coin

A coin struck for everyday use and released through banks into commerce. Contrast with proofs and presentation pieces.

Clad coinage

A coin made by sandwiching a base-metal core between layers of a different metal. US dimes, quarters and halves from 1965 onwards are copper-nickel clad.

Commemorative

A coin struck to mark an anniversary, event or subject rather than for everyday circulation. The Olympic 50ps of 2012 are UK commemoratives.

D

Denomination

The face value of a coin — 50p, £1, one cent, and so on. Not to be confused with metal content or collector value.

Devices

The raised elements on a coin — the portrait, lettering, emblems and date. Contrast with the field, which is the flat background.

Die

The hardened steel tool engraved in reverse with the coin design, used to strike blank planchets. Most coins are struck with two dies — obverse and reverse.

Die crack

A fine raised line on a struck coin caused by a fracture in the die. Collectable as a variety.

E

Edge

The third surface of a coin — the thickness. Can be plain, reeded (milled), lettered or decorated. The UK £2 has two different edge inscriptions across its bimetallic series.

Effigy

The royal portrait on the obverse of British coins. Charles III's coinage portrait (2022–) faces left — the opposite direction to Elizabeth II's, following the tradition of alternating each reign.

Error coin

A coin struck incorrectly due to a mint mistake — off-centre strikes, wrong planchet, missing elements, dual denominations. Some are valuable (2008 undated 20p); others are worthless curiosities.

F

FDC (Fleur de Coin)

French for "flower of the die". The highest British grade, a perfect coin showing no wear and full original detail. Roughly equivalent to US MS-70. Used almost exclusively for proofs.

Fine (F)

A circulated coin grade — design and legend clear but worn flat in the highest-relief areas. Sheldon F-12 to F-15.

Fineness

Purity of a precious-metal coin in parts per thousand. A .925 coin is 925/1000 silver (sterling); a .999 coin is "three nines fine".

First Strike

US grading-service designation for coins submitted within the first 30 days of a mint's release. Adds a small premium on the collector market.

G

Grade

The condition rating of a coin. British collectors use descriptive grades (Fair, Fine, Very Fine, Extremely Fine, Uncirculated, FDC); Americans use the 1–70 Sheldon numeric scale. See the grading guide.

Groat

A historical English silver coin worth 4 pence, struck intermittently from the 14th century to the 19th. Modern "Maundy fourpence" pieces continue the tradition.

H

Hammer die

The upper, moving die in a coin press — descends onto the planchet to impress the design. Usually carries the obverse (portrait).

I

Incuse

A design element pressed into the coin surface rather than raised above it. The US Indian Head $2.50 quarter eagle (1908–29) is a famous incuse-design coin.

Investment coin

A bullion coin bought primarily for its metal content. In the UK, Britannia and sovereign coins are capital-gains-tax free because they're legal tender — a tax advantage over bullion bars.

K

Key date

The rarest or lowest-mintage coin in a series — the one collectors need to complete a set. Examples: 1933 British penny (7 known), 2009 Kew Gardens 50p (210k mintage), 1916-D Mercury dime.

L

Legend

The lettered inscription around the edge or rim of a coin — CHARLES III D G REX FID DEF, etc.

Lustre

The original metallic sheen of an uncirculated coin, caused by the microscopic flow lines left by the strike. Lost through wear; never recovered by cleaning.

M

Milled edge

The ridges cut into a coin's edge, introduced in Britain in the 17th century to prevent clipping (shaving metal off the rim). Also called "reeded".

Mint error

See Error coin.

Mintage

The total number of coins struck of a given date/design. A key driver of rarity but not the only one — survival rate and demand matter just as much.

Mintmark

A small letter or symbol identifying the mint that struck a coin. Royal Mint coins carry no mintmark as standard. US examples: P, D, S, W, O.

MS (Mint State)

US Sheldon-scale grades for uncirculated coins, ranging MS-60 to MS-70. MS-65 is Gem; MS-70 is a perfect coin. The UK equivalent ranges from Uncirculated to FDC.

N

NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Company)

Major US third-party grading service, founded 1987. Encapsulates coins in tamper-evident holders with assigned Sheldon-scale grades.

Numismatics

The study and collection of coins, tokens, medals and paper money. Someone who studies or collects is a numismatist.

O

Obverse

"Heads" — the side of a coin carrying the principal design, typically the monarch's portrait on British coinage and historically the issuing authority.

Off-centre strike

An error where the planchet wasn't centred in the coining press at the moment of strike. Mild off-centres are common; severe ones fetch strong premiums.

P

Pattern

A trial coin struck to evaluate a proposed design, alloy or denomination. Never released for circulation. British pattern coins from Edward VIII are among the most sought-after.

PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service)

The other major US third-party grading service, founded 1986. PCGS and NGC grades typically sell at similar premiums.

Planchet

The blank metal disc on which a coin is struck — sometimes called a flan. Planchet errors (wrong metal, wrong size, clipped edges) are a rich vein of numismatic curiosities.

Proof

A specially struck collector coin, produced on polished dies and planchets at reduced press speed. Typically strikes are doubled to bring up every fine detail. Mirror fields and frosted devices give proofs their characteristic cameo look.

R

Reeded edge

See Milled edge.

Reverse

"Tails" — the opposite side of a coin from the obverse. Usually carries the coin's design theme and denomination.

Rim

The raised border around the outside edge of the obverse and reverse faces, protecting the design from wear.

S

Sheldon scale

The 1–70 numeric grading scale devised by Dr William Sheldon in 1949 and now the global standard. See our coin grading guide for the full UK-to-US crossover table.

Slab

Informal name for a third-party grading service holder — a hard plastic case with the coin's grade, certification number and barcode permanently attached.

Sovereign

A British gold coin with a face value of £1 and an actual gold content of 0.2354 troy oz (7.32 g of .9167 fine gold). First struck in 1489; still minted today. See sovereign values.

Strike

The act of forming a coin with a coining press, or the resulting quality — "a sharp strike" shows full design detail, "a weak strike" shows blurred or missing elements even on an uncirculated coin.

T

Token

A privately-issued metallic disc intended for commerce but not struck under government authority. Common in 18th- and 19th-century Britain during small-change shortages.

Troy ounce

The standard weight unit for precious metals — 31.1035 grams. All gold and silver spot prices on MyCoinage are quoted per troy ounce.

U

Uncirculated (UNC)

A coin that has never been released into general circulation and shows no wear. British UNC is roughly equivalent to US MS-60 to MS-62; the cleaner sub-grades are Brilliant Uncirculated (BU).

V

Variety

A minor but collectable difference between coins of the same date — a repunched mintmark, a doubled die, a transitional metal change. Varieties are identified by Fivaz-Stanton or similar catalogue numbers in the US; rarer to see formalised in UK catalogues.

Very Fine (VF)

A circulated British grade — all design elements visible but clear wear on the highest points. Sheldon VF-20 to VF-35.

X

XF / EF (Extremely Fine)

A lightly worn circulated coin with most detail intact and only minor rubbing on the highest-relief points. Sheldon XF-40 to XF-45.

Y

Year set

A collection containing every denomination struck in a given calendar year — typically assembled in a Royal Mint annual set folder or loose in a collector album.