August appears in the foreground, while in the second is a triumphal arch. The Latin inscription PROVIDENTIA refers to the divine nature of the Roman emperor. This iconography is the result of combining, on a single plane, the obverse and the reverse of an old coin. The bust was part of the collection of marble sculptures acquired by Miquel Mai, a Catalan notable who was Emperor Charles V's ambassador to Pope Cement VII in Rome, during his time in Italy.