A Coin
Before you start collecting coins, it’s important to learn basic coin terminology, including the parts of a coin and the different finishes. In addition to the terms below, review more in the Coin Term Glossary.
Parts of a Coin
Frame A-coin
Welcome to American Coin We make buying, selling, collecting, and learning about American coins easy. At American Coin you can learn about how to identify American coins, find mint marks, understand how grading affects prices, know how to buy, collect, and sell, and learn about the risks of investing. A pedigree is generally used to indicate a coin’s past or present ownership. In numismatics, as in the art world, a coin’s provenance can be an important factor in determining its authenticity, and a coin that was once part of a famous collection may be more desirable to some collectors. Hang on to your nickels and dimes, the pandemic has created a coin shortage Rachel Siegel 6/18/2020. Supreme Court lifts California worship bans prompted by coronavirus.
Obverse
The front side (“heads”) of a coin.
Reverse
The back side (“tails”) of a coin.
Edge
The outer border of a coin. Edges can be plain, reeded, lettered, or decorated.
Rim
The raised part of the edge on both sides of a coin that helps protect the coin’s design from wear.
Legend
The principal inscription or lettering on a coin.
Mint Mark
A small letter or symbol on a coin used to identify where a coin was made. Current U.S. mint marks are Philadelphia (P), Denver (D), San Francisco (S), and West Point (W). Learn more on our Mint Marks page.
Relief
The part of a coin’s design that is raised above the surface.
Field
The flat portion of a coin’s surface not used for design or inscription.
Coin Finishes
The Mint produces coins with various finishes, including circulating, uncirculated, and proof. Different production steps are used to make these coins.
Circulating Coins
Circulating coins are made to circulate among people as they take care of their daily business of buying and selling. The Mint produces these coins without the extra steps used for the other finishes.
Uncirculated Coins
The Mint makes uncirculated coins for saving and collecting. They are produced the same way as circulating coins, but with quality enhancements to create a brilliant finish.
Proof Coins
Proof coins have a mirror-like background with frosted design elements. The Mint uses a special process of manually feeding burnished coin blanks into presses with specially polished dies. Each coin is struck at least twice to bring out the details in the design.
Reverse proof coins feature a frosted background with a mirror-like design.
Enhanced Finishes
Sometimes the Mint makes special enhanced uncirculated, proof, or reverse proof coins. Frosting or polishing is applied to certain areas of the coin to bring out even more detail.
Additional Resources
We make buying, selling, collecting, and learning about American coins easy.
At American Coin you can learn about how to identify American coins, find mint marks, understand how grading affects prices, know how to buy, collect, and sell, and learn about the risks of investing. If you are new to buying or collecting coins, check out the How to Buy Coins section of our Coin School. And if you want to sell coins, start with our How to Sell Coins section of our Coin School.
At American Coin, we educate you about coins. We tell you the pros and cons of selling in various ways. We allow you to make an informed decision about where to go with the coins you have. Many people inherit coin collections. This is one of the best places to come to answer your questions about how to liquidate inherited collections.
If you want to learn more about coin collecting in general, visit our Coin School. You can learn more about the hobby of coin collecting. We recommend that you start with learning how to identify your American coins. Then learning about buying, collecting and selling coins will make your coin collecting experience more enjoyable!
How to Buy
If you are looking to buy coins for your collection or as an investment, American Coin can help. Buying coins successfully requires no more than a good knowledge of coins and the coins marketplace.
How to Sell
If you are looking to sell your coins and would like to better understand the coins marketplace and how best to sell, American Coin provides the tools and expertise to help you be successful.
A Coin Is Tossed And A Die Is Rolled
Coin School
A Coin Is Tossed 5 Times
If you are a beginning collector or investor looking for a great resource to learn about coins and coin collecting, American Coin is pleased to provide our online Coin School. On this site you can learn about identifying coins, grading coins for quality and value, finding the best channels for buying or selling, and much, much more.