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NYINC Signature Sale 3044  3-4 January 2016
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Lot 31047

Estimate: 5000 USD
Price realized: 4600 USD
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Ancients
Augustus (27 BC-AD 14), with Marcus Agrippa (died 12 BC). Æ dupondius (26mm, 13.24 gm, 12h). Gaul, Nemausus, AD 10-14. IMP DIVI F P - P, adduced heads of Augustus (right) and Agrippa (left), Augustus laureate, Agrippa wearing rostral crown / COL - NEM, crocodile chained to palm tree, wreath with long ties in left field, two further palm branches below crocodile. RPC 525. RIC 159. Superb glossy deep green patina. A pair of outstanding portraits! NGC MS★ 4/5 - 5/5. The left-facing bust on this attractive issue of Nemausus (modern Nimes) depicts Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, perhaps history's greatest sidekick. He was born in 63 BC, the same year as Gaius Octavius, with whom he struck up a close friendship in adolescence. Octavius recognized Agrippa's remarkable qualities as a soldier and statesman and relied heavily on him to put his various plans into action. Agrippa's mastery of strategy secured the naval victory over Sextus Pompey at Naulochus in 36 BC, and the defeat of Mark Antony and Cleopatra at Actium five years later. After Octavian assumed the title of Augustus in 27 BC, Agrippa was clearly regarded as second-in-command and the likely heir to the throne. His many building projects, financed out of his own purse, helped transform Rome from a city of brick to one of marble, and his commemorative inscriptions survive on many important monuments, including the Pantheon. His name continued to be revered long after his death in 12 BC, as this coin, struck two decades later, attests.

Estimate: 5000-6500 USD
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