Merida - Acueducto de los Milagros

In the Roman Empire, the city was known as "Emerita Augusta", the capital of the province of Lusitania. It was founded in 25 BC by Emperor Augustus as a colony for the veteran soldiers ("emeritus") of the Roman legions. The city was very important in Roman Hispania. It was endowed with all the comforts of a large Roman city and served as the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania. For centuries, until the fall of the Roman Empire, Mérida was an important economic, military, and cultural center.

Following invasions from the Visigoths, Mérida remained an important city of the Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania in the 6th century. In 713, the Arabs conquered the city and devastated it. Even under Islamic rule, Mérida remained a bishop's seat until it was moved to Santiago de Compostela in 1119.

In 1230 the Christian troops under Alfonso IX conquered Mérida during the Reconquista.

The "Acueducto de los Milagros" was part of a Roman water pipeline that supplied the city with fresh water. It crosses the Río Albarregas river valley over a length of approximately 830 meters.

The aqueduct was probably built in the 1st century AD, and repairs were carried out in the 3rd century - but the water pipe fell into disrepair after the Romans left.