After the1866 legalization of metric units of measure in the United States, the Office of Weights and Measures prepared standard metric weights and measures for distribution to the states. This brass cylinder holds ten liters or one decaliter. The stamp on the front reads: U.S. (/)DECALITRE (/) No.35. It was transferred to the Smithsonian by the U.S. National Bureau of Standards, the successor of the Office of Weights and Measures.
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