Rare Certificates.

Rare Certificates .

( FRED J . W . CROWE , P . G . O . Eng ., ctj . )

I- ^ O R the benefit of my fellow students and collectors , I have been invited to describe a few rarely met specimens of Alasonic certificates in the Christmas Number of THE MASONIC ILLUSTRATED , and it is an additional pleasure to do this because the illustrations are so extremely well

OLD CKIITII'ICATE OF THE "ENGLISH LODGE , Xu . 2 <> t , " AT UOUDlOAUX .

done in this admirable periodical . The photographs of the certificates have been specially taken for me by Bro . the Rev . A . C . Newman , of the Gordon Lodge 1726 , and full justice has been done to his excellent negatives . The first specimen is of special interest to us , as it

emanates from the noted " English Lodge , No . 204 " , at Bordeaux . This lodge was founded in 1732 , on April 27 th , but , as was not uncommon in those days , it had no warrant , but was simply " erected " by a number of brethren , who worked as a lodge . In 1766 , however , a warrant , dated

March 8 th , was granted to them by the Regular , or " Moderns" Grand Lodge , under the title of " The English Lodge at Bordeaux , France . " Although not " warranted , " it had been duly recognised as regular , and appears in the list of 1755 as No . 3 63 . In the 1770 list it is No . 298 ; in 1780 ,

No . 239 ; in 1781 , No . 240 ; and in 1792 , No . 204 , which last number it still retains in its title . It joined the Grand Orient of France in 1803 , but . according to Lane ' s Masonic Records , although its last payment was in 1788 , it was retained on the roll of the Grand Lodge of England until 1813 . The plate

is almost identical with the Irish Grand Lodge certificates of circa 1792 ( a form in use from 1 772 to 1805 ) , which , in its turn , was , in design , a copy of the first certificate of the

Grand Lodge of England , engraved by Cartwright and used from 1756-710 1809 . The letterpress follows the Irish form ( also adopted by the Aiicienls ) , commencing , "WE CHUCKS of the ENLIGHTENED AI EN of the most Antient and R . W . L . of St . Jn . of ] m ., " etc ., ( which is rather curious , as it is a Moderns lodge , ) and is in three languages , English , French ,

and Latin—surely a premonition of the enlenle corJiatc . Instead of the usual Xe Varietur is the sentence Signal 11 in el noltiluiii a me si ^ illi nolir e ! labulara cuslot / e , on the left side of the Ionic pillar . Resting against the pedestal at the bottom is a shield bearing the arms of the Moderns , and

resting on a bunch of English roses . No . 2 is a large and extremely handsome plate for the diploma of the Lodge , '' lTIeureuse Alliance a l'Or . \ de 1 'Orieiit " on a parchment iS \ by J 4 . } inches . I am not sure whether it is a proof , or if it is meant to lie filled in always in manuscript , but am inclined to think the latter , as Xe Varietur is printed at one side , and Par Mandainenl at the bottom .

EIGHTEENTH CENTURY FRENCH CEIfTI FII'ATK . Beneath a blazing live-pointed star is a figure of Charity , seated on clouds , and distributing bread to two children , whilst at her feet are plans for a temple , and various Masonic

tools . Flying amongst the clouds are three cherubs bearing the plumb , the 24 m . gauge , and spray of roses . Beneath is a temple guarded by an angel with a flaming sword against the approach of what I imagine to be a cowan . In the foreground are portions of some ruined building . The group is

very fine , and is pronounced by an expert to be " probably by Lagrence , and certainly designed by one of the best masters of the time of Louis XVI ., 1774 to 1793 . "