Rufrius Crispinus was a knight who lived during the later Julio-Claudian dynasty. The satirist Juvenal spitefully described him as one the "dregs" of the "Nile", indicating his Egyptian origin. It is believed he came to Rome as a fish merchant. Under the Roman Emperor Claudius he was the commander of the Praetorian Guard. In 47, he suppressed a rebellion and was promoted by the Senate to the rank of praetor and was given one and half a million sesterces.