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Coinage shapes
Although the vast majority of coins are round, coins are made in a variety of other shapes, including squares, diamonds, hexagons, heptagons, octagons, decagons, and dodecagons. They have also been struck with scalloped (wavy) edges, and with holes in the middle. Coins in the shape of polygons often have rounded edges or are Reuleaux polygons.
This article focuses mainly on circulating coins; a number of non-circulating commemorative coins have been made in special shapes, including guitars, pyramids, and maps. There is a list with more unusual shapes of non-circulating commemorative coins at the end of this page that all have been issued officially by various countries.
The Cook Islands have a circulating 2 dollar triangular coin with rounded corners.
A triangular coin with a face value of £5 (produced to commemorate the 2007/2008 Tutankhamun exhibition at The O2 Arena) was commissioned by the Isle of Man: it became legal tender on 6 December 2007. Other triangular coins issued earlier include: Cabinda coin, Bermuda coin, Uganda Millennium Coin and Polish Sterling-Silver 10-Zloty Coin.
Indo-Greek coins were often square. Aruba has a large circulating square 50 cents coin.
Many countries have struck square coins with rounded corners. Some of these, such as the Netherlands zinc 5 cent coin of World War II (1941–1943) and the Bangladesh 5 poisha coin (1977–1994) are oriented as a square, while others, such as the Netherlands 5 cents (1913–1940), the Netherlands Antilles 50 cent, the Bangladesh 5 poisha (1973–1974) and the 1981 Jersey 1 pound coin, are oriented as a diamond. Ceylon (the current Sri Lanka) issued its first square coin in 1909, followed by several others. India has had various circulating square coins as well, like denominated 1⁄2 and 2 anna coins, as well as 1 and 5 paisa coins.
Siege money, such as klippe coins or the siege money of Newark, was often in the shape of a lozenge (rhombus).
The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen introduced pentagonal 1⁄16 and 1⁄8 rial coins in 1948. In 2014 Transnistria was the next country to issue a circulating pentagonal 5 rubles hard plastic coin.
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Coinage shapes
Although the vast majority of coins are round, coins are made in a variety of other shapes, including squares, diamonds, hexagons, heptagons, octagons, decagons, and dodecagons. They have also been struck with scalloped (wavy) edges, and with holes in the middle. Coins in the shape of polygons often have rounded edges or are Reuleaux polygons.
This article focuses mainly on circulating coins; a number of non-circulating commemorative coins have been made in special shapes, including guitars, pyramids, and maps. There is a list with more unusual shapes of non-circulating commemorative coins at the end of this page that all have been issued officially by various countries.
The Cook Islands have a circulating 2 dollar triangular coin with rounded corners.
A triangular coin with a face value of £5 (produced to commemorate the 2007/2008 Tutankhamun exhibition at The O2 Arena) was commissioned by the Isle of Man: it became legal tender on 6 December 2007. Other triangular coins issued earlier include: Cabinda coin, Bermuda coin, Uganda Millennium Coin and Polish Sterling-Silver 10-Zloty Coin.
Indo-Greek coins were often square. Aruba has a large circulating square 50 cents coin.
Many countries have struck square coins with rounded corners. Some of these, such as the Netherlands zinc 5 cent coin of World War II (1941–1943) and the Bangladesh 5 poisha coin (1977–1994) are oriented as a square, while others, such as the Netherlands 5 cents (1913–1940), the Netherlands Antilles 50 cent, the Bangladesh 5 poisha (1973–1974) and the 1981 Jersey 1 pound coin, are oriented as a diamond. Ceylon (the current Sri Lanka) issued its first square coin in 1909, followed by several others. India has had various circulating square coins as well, like denominated 1⁄2 and 2 anna coins, as well as 1 and 5 paisa coins.
Siege money, such as klippe coins or the siege money of Newark, was often in the shape of a lozenge (rhombus).
The Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen introduced pentagonal 1⁄16 and 1⁄8 rial coins in 1948. In 2014 Transnistria was the next country to issue a circulating pentagonal 5 rubles hard plastic coin.