The Iulia Augusta Emerita colony, the first complete name of the city presently known as Merida, was founded in the year 25 BC by order of the Roman emperor Octavius Augustus with the function of acting as a place of settlement for emeritus soldiers discharged with honours from the Roman army after the Cantabrian Wars. Emerita Augusta would become one of the most important cities in Roman Hispania and was chosen as the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania.

From the very moment of the foundation of the city the coins minted there reached a significant circulation, not only in the Iberian Peninsula but also throughout the rest of the Empire.

This bronze As was coined sometime between the years 14 and 37 AD in the Emerita Augusta mint, during the rule of the Roman emperor Tiberius. A feature shared by the coins minted during the reign of this emperor is the inclusion of the term "COL" to highlight the city’s status as a colony. Also noticeable is the patina of oxidation that the passing of the centuries have left on this bronze coin.

Obverse: Laureate head and with the infulae of the Emperor Tiberius facing left with dotted and surrounded by the following legend:

TI CAESAR AUGUSTUS PON MAX IMP

Reverse: It shows the city gates and its walled area encircled by a dotted and the legend:

COLAUGUSTA EMERITA