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Obverse of the United States trade dollar
Obverse of the United States trade dollar

The trade dollar was a United States dollar coin minted to compete with other large silver coins that were already popular in East Asia. The idea first came about in the 1860s, when the price of silver began to decline due to increased mining efforts in the western United States. The Coinage Act of 1873 made trade dollars legal tender up to five dollars. The coins were first struck in 1873, and most of the production was sent to China. Eventually, bullion producers began converting large amounts of silver into trade dollars, causing the coins to make their way into American commercial channels. This frustrated payees, as the coins were traded for less than one dollar each. In response to their wide distribution in US commerce, the coins were officially demonetized in 1876, but continued to circulate. Production of business strikes ended in 1878, though the mintage of proof coins continued until 1883. The trade dollar was remonetized when the Coinage Act of 1965 was signed into law. (Full article...)

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Woodcut of Thomas Illyricus preaching
Woodcut of Thomas Illyricus preaching

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Jair Bolsonaro in 2022
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July 11: Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Genocide in Poland (1943)

Sculpture of Zheng He
Sculpture of Zheng He
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Large red damselfly

The large red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula) is a species of damselfly belonging to the family Coenagrionidae. Found mainly in Europe, with some populations also in northern Africa and western Asia, it inhabits small ponds, lakes and dikes, and occasionally slow-moving rivers. Large red damselflies have black legs and wing spots in both sexes, and can reach a body length of 33 to 36 millimetres (1.3 to 1.4 in). They are often the first damselflies to emerge in the spring, usually in April or May, and adults can be found until September in some localities. This female large red damselfly was photographed on Cumnor Hill in Oxfordshire, England. It is of the form fulvipes, one of three colour forms for the species.

Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp

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