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Fresco excavated by Marinatos at Akrotiri

Spyridon Marinatos (1901–1974) was a Greek archaeologist who specialised in theMinoan andMycenaean civilizations of the AegeanBronze Age, and excavated the Minoan site ofAkrotiri(fresco pictured) onThera between 1967 and 1974. He received several honours in Greece and abroad, and was considered one of the most important Greek archaeologists of his day. He joined theGreek Archaeological Service in 1919 and spent much of his early career on the island ofCrete, where he excavated several Minoan sites. He served three times as head of the Greek Archaeological Service, including under themilitary junta which ruled Greece between 1967 and 1974. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the junta; in the late 1930s, he had been close tothe dictatorial regime ofIoannis Metaxas. Marinatos died while excavating at Akrotiri in 1974, and is buried at the site. (Full article...)

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National Geographic Society Administration Building

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On this day

July 10:Independence Day inthe Bahamas (1973)

Depiction of theIsshi incident

645 – In a plot to eliminate the JapaneseSoga clan,Prince Naka no Ōe assassinatedSoga no Iruka(depicted), beginning theIsshi incident.
1519 –Zhu Chenhao declaredMing emperorZhengde to be a usurper, beginning thePrince of Ning rebellion.
1668 –Anglo-Spanish War (1654–1660):Henry Morgan with an Englishprivateer force landed atPorto Bello (in modern-day Panama) in an attempt tocapture the Spanish city.
1925 – Indian mystic andspiritual masterMeher Baba began his silence until his death in 1969, only communicating by means of an alphabet board or by unique hand gestures.
1978 –Moktar Ould Daddah, the firstpresident of Mauritania, was ousted in acoup d'état led byMustafa Ould Salek.

Ladislaus IV of Hungary (d. 1290)
Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham (d. 1460)
Catherine Cornaro (d. 1510)
Ed Lowe (b. 1920)

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Today's featured picture

Thecheckerboard wrasse (Halichoeres hortulanus) is a species of fish belonging to thewrasse family. It is native to theIndian Ocean and centralPacific Ocean. It is a small fish that can reach a maximum length of 27 centimetres (11 inches). Both its sex and appearance change during its life, and the colouring at each stage is variable based on location. Like many other wrasses, the checkerboard wrasse is aprotogynous hermaphrodite, starting life as a female and later becoming a male, changing sex at maturity when it is about 12.8 centimetres (5.0 inches) long. This checkerboard wrasse was photographed in theRed Sea off the coast of Egypt.

Photograph credit:Diego Delso

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