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Article MASONIC NOTES AND QUERIES. ← Page 3 of 4 →
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Masonic Notes And Queries.
The eagle represented genius gazing stedfastly at truth . Five triangles interlaced is the symbol of peace , good will , and fraternal love . The beehive was an emblem of industry , and of the obedience due to the Worshipful Master .
The scythe , hour-glass , and skull , were emblems of time , which destroys all things . The dove was au emblem of the Creating Spirit fecundating nature . Osiris was sometimes represented , among the Egyptians , by a sceptre sui'inounted by an eye ,
signifying—He who is , who sees , and who governs , which is God . Isis ( nature ) was wisdom , and Osiris ( the sun ) power ; the two united in the Deity become one with him . Life and death were represented by a child and an old man . ]
THE SEVEN STAES . What does the old-fashioned emblem of the seven stars , surrounding the moon , allude to ?—4 . 14 .. —[ In some lodges you will be told to seven regularly made Master Masons ; but the earlier meaning was that each one of them represented one of the seven
sciences . ] A GENTLEMAN MASON . Hunting amongst some old Masonic papers I came upon the following—amongst other—curious memoranda : — Q . What do you learn hy being a Gentleman
Mason ? A . Seeresy , morality , and good-fellowship . Q . What do you learn h y being an operative Mason ? A . To hew , square , and mould stone , lay a level , and raise a perpendicular .
—4-t-l-SIE THOMAS SACKVILLE . In an extract , forwarded to me from an unknown source , Lord Charles Sackville is said to be the great-grandson of Sir Thomas Sackville , who , in 1561 , was Graud Master of the Grand Lodge at York . Where is the record of any such Grand Mastership to be found ?
"Lord Charles Sackville—Duke of Middlesex , son of Lionel Granville Sackville , Duke of Dorset , and great-grandson of Sir Thomas Sackville , who in 1561 was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge at Yorkestablished , in 1733 , a lodge at Florence . This was done without regular authority , as there was no order
for it under the English Constitution , and no acknowledgment or permission for the act by the Grand Lodge of England , which was then under the Grand Mastership of James Lyon , Earl of Strathmore - " Whether under the name Harpocrateswhich is
, on the reverse of a medal in commemoration of this event , in Masonic designs , and the Eleusin'ian casket with the serpent , the thrysus-staff , and the superscription , al > oriffine ( From the source ) , are represented , or , as might otherwise appear , For truth , it would he difficult to say . The obverse of the medal
is adorned with the bust of the founder of the lodge . The name of the maker , Lorenz Natter , is seen on both sides of the medal .
THE CHAETEE OE COLOGNE . A note on the famous Charter of Cologne may not he out of place . Such an interesting piece of antiquity deserves to be better known than it appears to be amongst Masons . The story of the Charter is
told iu the following words : — " Prince Frederick , of the Netherlands , National Grand Master of the Lodges of the Netherlands , presented , in 1818 , to a meeting of the Lodges of the Hague and of Delft , two ancient documents : — " 1 . A manuscript on parchment done in cypher
, signed by nineteen Master Masons , dated June 23 , 1535 , at Cologne . " 2 . Some sheets of the minutes of the Lodge Fredericks Kreederthal , at the Hague , from 1637 to Feb . 2 , 1638 . "The Prince had received these documentsin
, 1816 , with a letter in female penmanship , signed ' C , child of V . J . ' The authoress declared that she had discovered those papers amongst the writings of her father , who , it was said , had received them of Mr . Van Boetzelaar . The latter was reported to have
"Professor Kohler , in his Coin Diversions ( part 8 , page 129 ) , and Bode , in his Pocket Book ( dated 1777 , under No . 1 ) , have both given copies of this , probably the oldest Masonic medal . Iu the valuable collection of Masonic medals belonging to the Minerva Lodge of The Three Palms in the Eastat Leipsicthere is
, , likewise a copy of it . " The obverse of this medal exhibits a bust of Lord Sackville , with the inscription CAEOLVS SACKVILLE , MAGISTSE FL . ( Charles Sackville , Master , Florence ) .. The exact correspondence of the Masonic emblems in this ancient medal witli those of the present day is
very striking . " In order not to destroy the interest of the above quotation , I have inserted the whole at full length ; but my query refers to the York Grand Mastershi p only . I . know it is a Masonic tradition that such was the fact ; but where is the evidence upon which it
isbased to be found ? The notices of "Remarkable Events " inserted in our Pocket-books go for nothing ; . they are mere padding , without a grain of dependence to be placed on such statements . —Ex . Ex .
preserved them with signal vi gilance . It is suspected that the writer of the letter was the daughter of Bro . Van Jeylinger , who , in 1795 , was National Grand Master , aud successor of the above-named Van Boetzelaar . Another version gives it that these documents had , for a long time , been in the hands of the family of Van Wassenaar Van Opdamand that a
, member of that family had presented them to the late National Grand Master of Holland , from 1780 to 1790 , who finally passed them over to Van Jeylinger , with strict injunctions to keep them till the restitution of the House of Orange . " The document itself was first introduced to the
fraternity by Bro . Heldman , in an incorrect form , in his work entitled The three oldest Historical Memorials of the German Masonic Fraternity , 5819 . In regard to its authenticity , it has suffered much opposition , and Bros . Giesler and Kloss , of Frankfort , with Dr . Foestermann , of Halle , proved , with critical
exactness , the incorrectness of Heldinan's version . Even in the kingdom of the Netherlands , there exists a doubt of its autheuticy , and a commission of five
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Notes And Queries.
The eagle represented genius gazing stedfastly at truth . Five triangles interlaced is the symbol of peace , good will , and fraternal love . The beehive was an emblem of industry , and of the obedience due to the Worshipful Master .
The scythe , hour-glass , and skull , were emblems of time , which destroys all things . The dove was au emblem of the Creating Spirit fecundating nature . Osiris was sometimes represented , among the Egyptians , by a sceptre sui'inounted by an eye ,
signifying—He who is , who sees , and who governs , which is God . Isis ( nature ) was wisdom , and Osiris ( the sun ) power ; the two united in the Deity become one with him . Life and death were represented by a child and an old man . ]
THE SEVEN STAES . What does the old-fashioned emblem of the seven stars , surrounding the moon , allude to ?—4 . 14 .. —[ In some lodges you will be told to seven regularly made Master Masons ; but the earlier meaning was that each one of them represented one of the seven
sciences . ] A GENTLEMAN MASON . Hunting amongst some old Masonic papers I came upon the following—amongst other—curious memoranda : — Q . What do you learn hy being a Gentleman
Mason ? A . Seeresy , morality , and good-fellowship . Q . What do you learn h y being an operative Mason ? A . To hew , square , and mould stone , lay a level , and raise a perpendicular .
—4-t-l-SIE THOMAS SACKVILLE . In an extract , forwarded to me from an unknown source , Lord Charles Sackville is said to be the great-grandson of Sir Thomas Sackville , who , in 1561 , was Graud Master of the Grand Lodge at York . Where is the record of any such Grand Mastership to be found ?
"Lord Charles Sackville—Duke of Middlesex , son of Lionel Granville Sackville , Duke of Dorset , and great-grandson of Sir Thomas Sackville , who in 1561 was Grand Master of the Grand Lodge at Yorkestablished , in 1733 , a lodge at Florence . This was done without regular authority , as there was no order
for it under the English Constitution , and no acknowledgment or permission for the act by the Grand Lodge of England , which was then under the Grand Mastership of James Lyon , Earl of Strathmore - " Whether under the name Harpocrateswhich is
, on the reverse of a medal in commemoration of this event , in Masonic designs , and the Eleusin'ian casket with the serpent , the thrysus-staff , and the superscription , al > oriffine ( From the source ) , are represented , or , as might otherwise appear , For truth , it would he difficult to say . The obverse of the medal
is adorned with the bust of the founder of the lodge . The name of the maker , Lorenz Natter , is seen on both sides of the medal .
THE CHAETEE OE COLOGNE . A note on the famous Charter of Cologne may not he out of place . Such an interesting piece of antiquity deserves to be better known than it appears to be amongst Masons . The story of the Charter is
told iu the following words : — " Prince Frederick , of the Netherlands , National Grand Master of the Lodges of the Netherlands , presented , in 1818 , to a meeting of the Lodges of the Hague and of Delft , two ancient documents : — " 1 . A manuscript on parchment done in cypher
, signed by nineteen Master Masons , dated June 23 , 1535 , at Cologne . " 2 . Some sheets of the minutes of the Lodge Fredericks Kreederthal , at the Hague , from 1637 to Feb . 2 , 1638 . "The Prince had received these documentsin
, 1816 , with a letter in female penmanship , signed ' C , child of V . J . ' The authoress declared that she had discovered those papers amongst the writings of her father , who , it was said , had received them of Mr . Van Boetzelaar . The latter was reported to have
"Professor Kohler , in his Coin Diversions ( part 8 , page 129 ) , and Bode , in his Pocket Book ( dated 1777 , under No . 1 ) , have both given copies of this , probably the oldest Masonic medal . Iu the valuable collection of Masonic medals belonging to the Minerva Lodge of The Three Palms in the Eastat Leipsicthere is
, , likewise a copy of it . " The obverse of this medal exhibits a bust of Lord Sackville , with the inscription CAEOLVS SACKVILLE , MAGISTSE FL . ( Charles Sackville , Master , Florence ) .. The exact correspondence of the Masonic emblems in this ancient medal witli those of the present day is
very striking . " In order not to destroy the interest of the above quotation , I have inserted the whole at full length ; but my query refers to the York Grand Mastershi p only . I . know it is a Masonic tradition that such was the fact ; but where is the evidence upon which it
isbased to be found ? The notices of "Remarkable Events " inserted in our Pocket-books go for nothing ; . they are mere padding , without a grain of dependence to be placed on such statements . —Ex . Ex .
preserved them with signal vi gilance . It is suspected that the writer of the letter was the daughter of Bro . Van Jeylinger , who , in 1795 , was National Grand Master , aud successor of the above-named Van Boetzelaar . Another version gives it that these documents had , for a long time , been in the hands of the family of Van Wassenaar Van Opdamand that a
, member of that family had presented them to the late National Grand Master of Holland , from 1780 to 1790 , who finally passed them over to Van Jeylinger , with strict injunctions to keep them till the restitution of the House of Orange . " The document itself was first introduced to the
fraternity by Bro . Heldman , in an incorrect form , in his work entitled The three oldest Historical Memorials of the German Masonic Fraternity , 5819 . In regard to its authenticity , it has suffered much opposition , and Bros . Giesler and Kloss , of Frankfort , with Dr . Foestermann , of Halle , proved , with critical
exactness , the incorrectness of Heldinan's version . Even in the kingdom of the Netherlands , there exists a doubt of its autheuticy , and a commission of five