Coin Terminology and Glossary

The Coin Collecting Dictionary includes 546 titles used widely in the coin collectors community, and has received over 635567 search inquires.

Random title: R# (R1-R8)
Explanation: Rarity scale: R1 most common; R8 least common. The often used Sheldon scale is:
  • R8 = 1-3 known (estimated), 'Unique or Nearly Unique'
  • R7 = 4-12 known, 'Extremely Rare'
  • R6 = 13-30 known, 'Very Rare'
  • R5 = 31-75 known, 'Rare'
  • R4 = 76-200 known, 'Very Scarce'
  • R3 = 201-500 known, 'Scarce'
  • R2 = 501-1250 known, 'Uncommon'
  • R1 = over 1251 known, 'Common'

Most popular coin titles

DefinitionSearchesPercentage
Specimen Proof (SP-70 or PF-70) 37370 13.38%
Silver Clad 26736 9.57%
Coin Silver 18915 6.77%
BN 16773 6.00%
Encapsulated Coin 16187 5.79%
Slabbed Coins 15810 5.66%
RB 15353 5.50%
Deep Cameo (DC or DCAM) 12510 4.48%
PF (PF60, PF70) 12135 4.34%
Reeded Edge 11933 4.27%
Ultra Cameo (UCAM) 11630 4.16%
PQ 10404 3.72%
MS (MS60-MS70) 10310 3.69%
PR (PR60, PR70) 10203 3.65%
High Relief 9591 3.43%
Incuse 9508 3.40%
Coin drop 8848 3.17%
Obverse or Face side 8816 3.16%
Rarity 8478 3.03%
Reverse Cameo 7864 2.81%