292, Lot: 353. Estimate $300. Sold for $300. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

The Triumvirs. Octavian. Autumn 32-summer 31 BC. AR Denarius (20mm, 3.78 g, 4h). Italian (Rome?) mint. Diademed head of Pax right; cornucopia behind, olive branch before / Octavian advancing right, raising hand in adlocutio and holding spear over shoulder. RIC I 253; CRI 400; RSC 72. VF, toned, bankers’ marks.

This coin is one of the numerous allegorical types employed during the period leading up to Actium as Octavian was engaged in a war of propaganda against Antony and Cleopatra. The obverse shows Pax, the bringer of abundance. The reverse displays Octavian in the attitude of adlocutio, or the commander in chief addressing the troops. By combining these two symbols, Octavian addressing the eventual showdown with his enemy. In the end, his military prowess would bring a final and long-lasting peace to an empire tired by civil war.