Coin Terminology and Glossary

The Coin Collecting Dictionary includes 546 titles used widely in the coin collectors community, and has received over 947755 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) 54419  13.91%
Silver Clad 31499  8.05%
Coin Silver 23584  6.03%
Slabbed Coins 22438  5.74%
BN 21980  5.62%
Encapsulated Coin 21202  5.42%
RB 20335  5.20%
Deep Cameo (DC or DCAM) 17594  4.50%
PF (PF60, PF70) 17219  4.40%
Reeded Edge 16324  4.17%
Ultra Cameo (UCAM) 16291  4.17%
PQ 15090  3.86%
Rarity 14945  3.82%
PR (PR60, PR70) 14917  3.81%
MS (MS60-MS70) 14907  3.81%
Incuse 14074  3.60%
Coin drop 13831  3.54%
High Relief 13800  3.53%
Reverse Cameo 13358  3.42%
Obverse or Face side 13072  3.34%