From today's featured article
Spyridon Marinatos (1901–1974) was a Greek archaeologist who specialised in the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations of the Aegean Bronze Age, and excavated the Minoan site of Akrotiri (fresco pictured) on Thera 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 the Greek Archaeological Service in 1919 and spent much of his early career on the island of Crete, where he excavated several Minoan sites. He served three times as head of the Greek Archaeological Service, including under the military junta which ruled Greece between 1967 and 1974. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the junta; in the late 1930s, he had been close to the dictatorial regime of Ioannis Metaxas. Marinatos died while excavating at Akrotiri in 1974, and is buried at the site. (Full article...)
Did you know ...
- ... that a 1932 building (pictured) of the National Geographic Society Headquarters was constructed in part to house the group's collection of 300,000 photographs?
- ... that many of Johann Sebastian Bach's manuscripts were lost because some of his family members did not care about preserving them?
- ... that it took searchers three days to find the crash site of Western Air Lines Flight 34?
- ... that Roy Soemirat led the evacuation of Indonesian citizens from Iran during the Iran–Israel war?
- ... that Bill Maynard received letters thanking him for making Oh No It's Selwyn Froggitt "the cleanest show on television"?
- ... that Mary Kahil, an Egyptian Christian mystic, cofounded one of the earliest women's movements in the Arab world?
- ... that the band Pinmonkey got their name from an episode of The Simpsons?
- ... that Imogen was described as "puns-and-needles"?
- ... that Chad McCharles, before becoming a bishop, moonlighted as a school bus driver?
In the news

- Flooding in Central Texas (pictured), United States, leaves more than 110 people dead.
- Astronomers announce the discovery of 3I/ATLAS, an interstellar object passing through the Solar System.
- The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile releases the first light images from its new 8.4-metre (28 ft) telescope.
- In basketball, the Oklahoma City Thunder defeat the Indiana Pacers to win the NBA Finals.
On this day
July 10: Independence Day in the Bahamas (1973)

- 645 – In a plot to eliminate the Japanese Soga clan, Prince Naka no Ōe assassinated Soga no Iruka (depicted), beginning the Isshi incident.
- 1519 – Zhu Chenhao declared Ming emperor Zhengde to be a usurper, beginning the Prince of Ning rebellion.
- 1668 – Anglo-Spanish War (1654–1660): Henry Morgan with an English privateer force landed at Porto Bello (in modern-day Panama) in an attempt to capture the Spanish city.
- 1925 – Indian mystic and spiritual master Meher 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 first president of Mauritania, was ousted in a coup d'état led by Mustafa Ould Salek.
- Ladislaus IV of Hungary (d. 1290)
- Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham (d. 1460)
- Catherine Cornaro (d. 1510)
- Ed Lowe (b. 1920)
Today's featured picture
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The checkerboard wrasse (Halichoeres hortulanus) is a species of fish belonging to the wrasse family. It is native to the Indian Ocean and central Pacific 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 a protogynous 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 the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt. Photograph credit: Diego Delso
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