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On Freemasonry. The Spurious Freemasonry Of Ancient Times.
which were so placed as to receive the rays of the rising sun every clay in the year in his progress through the Signs of the Zodiac ; and hence the temple was furnished with an astronomical apartment , on the ceiling of which was engraven in relief , a celestial planisphere , accompanied by a series of hieroglyphics which bear a similar reference ; and are thus
particularized by Denon . " The zodiac is surrounded with two large figures which represent the year . They have a winged sign before their mouths , to symbolize eternity , or the passage of the sun to the solstices . A disk , which represents the sun , is at the juncture of the thighs of the figures , and from it issues a pencil of rays , which fall on the head of Isis , who is either the moon or the earth . The sun ,
placed in the sign of Cancer , may serve as the date of the erection of this temple . These great p latbands are sculptured ancl painted ; the figures are in their natural colours , on a blue ground sprinkled with yellow stars . " The legend of initiation , as taught in ancient India , states , that the Linga , instead of the body of Maha Deva was severed into
thirtyone portions ; * which an Indian pundit informed Captain Wilford , referred to an attempt to reconcile the course of the moon to that of the sun , by dividing the synodical revolution into thirty-one parts ; which may also represent three hundred and ten years . Pausanias takes notice of a most curious and remarkable
piece of antiquity , which throws some light on this subject . It stood near mount Taygetus , and was called the monument of Osiris . He tells us , that " at particular intervals from this monument were erected seven pillars ; placed eiccording to some ancient rule ancl method ; which pillars were supposed to represent the seven planets . If then these exterior stones
related to the seven erratic bodies in our sphere , the central monument of Osiris must necessarily have been designed for the sun . And however rude the whole may possibly have appeared , it is the most ancient representation upon record , and consequently the most curious , of the planetary system . "f The astronomical princip les of the rites of Osiris were here practically illustrated ; and as this temple , with its attendant
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On Freemasonry. The Spurious Freemasonry Of Ancient Times.
which were so placed as to receive the rays of the rising sun every clay in the year in his progress through the Signs of the Zodiac ; and hence the temple was furnished with an astronomical apartment , on the ceiling of which was engraven in relief , a celestial planisphere , accompanied by a series of hieroglyphics which bear a similar reference ; and are thus
particularized by Denon . " The zodiac is surrounded with two large figures which represent the year . They have a winged sign before their mouths , to symbolize eternity , or the passage of the sun to the solstices . A disk , which represents the sun , is at the juncture of the thighs of the figures , and from it issues a pencil of rays , which fall on the head of Isis , who is either the moon or the earth . The sun ,
placed in the sign of Cancer , may serve as the date of the erection of this temple . These great p latbands are sculptured ancl painted ; the figures are in their natural colours , on a blue ground sprinkled with yellow stars . " The legend of initiation , as taught in ancient India , states , that the Linga , instead of the body of Maha Deva was severed into
thirtyone portions ; * which an Indian pundit informed Captain Wilford , referred to an attempt to reconcile the course of the moon to that of the sun , by dividing the synodical revolution into thirty-one parts ; which may also represent three hundred and ten years . Pausanias takes notice of a most curious and remarkable
piece of antiquity , which throws some light on this subject . It stood near mount Taygetus , and was called the monument of Osiris . He tells us , that " at particular intervals from this monument were erected seven pillars ; placed eiccording to some ancient rule ancl method ; which pillars were supposed to represent the seven planets . If then these exterior stones
related to the seven erratic bodies in our sphere , the central monument of Osiris must necessarily have been designed for the sun . And however rude the whole may possibly have appeared , it is the most ancient representation upon record , and consequently the most curious , of the planetary system . "f The astronomical princip les of the rites of Osiris were here practically illustrated ; and as this temple , with its attendant