Coin Terminology and Glossary

The Coin Collecting Dictionary includes 546 titles used widely in the coin collectors community, and has received over 861814 search inquires.

Selected title: Proof
Explanation: Distinct with an almost mirror-like surface, proof coins are made from carefully selected coin blanks that have been highly polished and a high-quality die. This achieves perfect strikes with even impressions and distinct designs. Not all proofs are the same. The most common understanding of proof is that the flat background parts of the coin have a highly polished mirror finish, and the raised parts of the design have a matt finish, giving a higher level of contrast between the two. This is achieved by sand-blasting the die, the hardened steel punch with which the blank coins are struck, to give a matt finish, followed by giving the raised parts of the die a highly polished surface, usually by polishing them with diamond powder. The coin blanks themselves are usually produced to a higher quality of finish before striking. Proof coins are usually double struck at lower striking speeds, to give a higher and sharper definition. They are usually produced on a special machine, and may be hand, rather than mechanically fed into and extracted from the coining press. They are usually individually inspected, and packaged. A proof coin should provide an excellent specimen, and its quality should approach perfection. Some proof coins are made with an all matt finish, as for example the 1902 Edward VII Coronation proof coins, while others are produced as 'reverse proofs', i.e. with the raised parts polished and the background matt.

Most popular coin titles

DefinitionSearchesPercentage
Specimen Proof (SP-70 or PF-70) 52750 14.53%
Silver Clad 30210 8.32%
Coin Silver 22215 6.12%
Slabbed Coins 21082 5.81%
BN 20447 5.63%
Encapsulated Coin 19944 5.49%
RB 18865 5.20%
Deep Cameo (DC or DCAM) 16251 4.48%
PF (PF60, PF70) 15746 4.34%
Reeded Edge 15011 4.13%
Ultra Cameo (UCAM) 14968 4.12%
PQ 13786 3.80%
MS (MS60-MS70) 13663 3.76%
PR (PR60, PR70) 13615 3.75%
Rarity 13256 3.65%
Incuse 12654 3.48%
High Relief 12543 3.45%
Coin drop 12383 3.41%
Reverse Cameo 11901 3.28%
Obverse or Face side 11797 3.25%