Augustus. 27 BC-AD 14. AR Denarius (17 mm, 2,97 g). Rome mint; C. Sulpicius Platorinus, moneyer. Struck 13 BC.CAESAR AVGVSTVS Bare head right / C SVLPICIVS - PLATORIN Augustus and Agrippa, bare-headed and togate, seated side by side, facing slightly left, on a bisellium, placed on a platform which is ornamented with three rostra; on left, staff or spear. RIC I 407; RSC 529. VF, toned, repaired. Rare.
The prows on the reverse commemorate the occasion on which Agrippa received the rostral crown, the battle of Naulochus. The coinage of moneyer C. Sulpicius Platorinus focused entirely on Marcus Agrippa, closest friend, advisor, and confidant of Augustus. Agrippa had been elevated to a role similar to the emperor and was intended to be the heir to the throne. This rare reverse type showing Augustus and Agrippa on equal footing was minted just a year before Agrippa's untimely death, setting back the dynastic desires of Augustus for the first time, but not the last. A rare type for an important historical period.