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Article MASONS OF ENGLAND AND THEIR WORKS. ← Page 2 of 4 →
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Masons Of England And Their Works.
stitutions of Geometry" ( or Masonry ) , for none of them say Ereemasonry , was first noticed by Mr . Halliwell , in a communication read before the Societ y of Antiquaries , ancl was edited by him in 1840 . The other ancient manuscript , dating a century later , that is about 1500 , AA'as only received into the Museum 159
Library in October , S ; it Avas printed a few months since in facsimile , being edited by Mr . MattheAv Cooke , a zealous member of the present Grand Lodge . I can here attempt to discuss all the . characteristic qualities of the regulations and bye-laws , . as they may be termedcontained in these Avorks ; it
, will therefore noiv be only necessary to state that they were undoubtedly compiled for the use of a body of working masons ; that they refer to the yearly assemblies ( of some companies or guilds , I consider , ) and no doubt the meetings aimed at by the statutes ; to a lodge as a Avorkshop ; directing " the most cunning to
be governor of the work ancl to be called master ;" -taking of apprentices ; workmanship ; brotherly love ; moral conduct ; punishment of offenders ; and observances of their " articles and points , " or bye-laws as they may be termed , many of which appear very similar to the precepts contained in the identures of
apprentices of the last century . There are not any references to secret signs ( in Germany these are not supposed to haA'e been usen until 1452 ); or to mason ' s marks—monograms , as they might be properly called . Upon this question , however , though probably it will be said by some that I know nothing about the matter I consider , Avith others , that Avhilst such marks as were made by the ancient masons , often took the place of a proper sign manual to a document , they
then , as now , when placed on a stone , merely designated the stone Avhich each man had worked . Occasionally a double mark is observable , one being supposed to be that of the foremen under Avhom the mason worked , the other that of the workmen himself , so that by these marks , in case of wrong or defective workmanshipthe mason who had to make
, his work good could at once be kuoAvn . Erom a feAV observations recently made , it has been ascertained that a series of marks are found upon buildings erected Avithin a short distance of each other , proving the employment of the same set of Avorkmen at each place . The Lady Chapel of Ely Cathedral , ancl St .
Stephen ' s Chapel , Westminster , were contemporaneous buildings , and offer a reliable instance Avhere some of the Avorkmen Avere engaged upon both structures . To refer to other trades , the carpenters used marks down to as late as 1597 ; Avhile the Cooper ' s Company , in 1758 issued particular marks to the members of
, their trade . Merchant ' s marks are Avell knoAvn to have existed during the Mediaeval period , if not equally employed by them now ; and rarely can a black-letter oook be opened Avithout one or two belonging to the author or printer being seen .
As there now only remains to be detailed a portion of my subject not closely connected AA'ith what has heen given , I venture to offer a few observations on some of the important points elucidated by this enquiry . The first is the very noteAvorthy fact , that the master masonthough obtained occasionallou
, y the spot , appears to have been sought for in some far distant localit y , very similar to the architects of the present clay . Besides what the documents of Salisbury prove , there is one remarkable instance of this AA'hich
I have not stated . A cementarius , named Durandus , employed from 1214 to 1251 upon Rouen Cathedral , is knoAvn to have been sent for by the Abbot of Beaulieu , * in Hampshire , ancl that he came over is presumed from the circumstance that it required the king ' s authority to release 21 burellosf belonging to
Durandus , Avhich were detained at Southampton . Many of the master masons appear to have realised property , and to have lands at their disposal ; they appear to have insisted upon comfortable habitations while at work , to say nothing of the donation of a gown , furred or otherwise , a practice which has been
noticed as occurring carry in the fourteenth century ( 1321 ) , and is knoAvn to haA'e been a common reward in the Mediawal ages to the household retainers . The first donation of a livery to the king ' s clerk of the Avorks , yet ascertained , Avas in 1391 . Tunics , aprons , gloves , 1355 , and clogs or shoes , appear to have been the necessaries found for those of secondary and lower
classes . That they Avere considered men of repute may be inferred from the fact that the clergy were often associated Avith them in the contracts , apparently in the place of sureties . These contracts , ancl the statutes likewise , distinctly shoAV that the Mediawal masons Avorked not only by the day , but
they were accustomed to take work by the piece : in one instance measured work is mentioned , 1306 , and even large contracts Avere taken , sometimes under "heaA'y penalties . " They were generally bound , though not always so , not to attend at any other building ; Avhile on the other hand , the statutes clearly show
that they kneAV how to look after their own interests , when they did not feel disposed to submit to the " dictation" of their employers , or to be influenced b y the threats of the "haughty aristocracy" of the period . It woidd have been some satisfaction to have found a return of the "Registrar General" of the day , for I regret to say that the average period during Avhich each master mason held his office at York was
only twelve years . Shall Ave speculate whether this shortness of time arose from his discharge consequent on slack work ? or from being an elderly man before his merits were discovered and office bestowed ? or from dying early through injuries natural to his pursuits ? Some of the agreements would lead us to form the latter opinion as the most probable one . HaA'ing thus described most of the important features connected AA'ith these illustrious men and
their trade , their designations will UOAV be noticed , as the titles exhibit some peculiarities that do not appear to be easy of explanation . It may perhaps lie a matter of surprise that this was not attempted in the earl y portion of the paper , but being desirous of keeping all the designations together , and some of
them being necessarily reserved for the conclusion , they are now introduced . That these Mediaeval terms are not yet clearly comprehended , may be gathered from an amusing quotation lately brought before me , iu the case of Richard of WoE'eston , cited as a" prudens architectus" in a register of the period -of
Bishop Pudsey of Durham , early in the twelfth century . In a charter relating to an exchange of lands , this Richard is styled " ingeniator , " and the translator commenting upon the term , writes , " Dick the Snarer
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masons Of England And Their Works.
stitutions of Geometry" ( or Masonry ) , for none of them say Ereemasonry , was first noticed by Mr . Halliwell , in a communication read before the Societ y of Antiquaries , ancl was edited by him in 1840 . The other ancient manuscript , dating a century later , that is about 1500 , AA'as only received into the Museum 159
Library in October , S ; it Avas printed a few months since in facsimile , being edited by Mr . MattheAv Cooke , a zealous member of the present Grand Lodge . I can here attempt to discuss all the . characteristic qualities of the regulations and bye-laws , . as they may be termedcontained in these Avorks ; it
, will therefore noiv be only necessary to state that they were undoubtedly compiled for the use of a body of working masons ; that they refer to the yearly assemblies ( of some companies or guilds , I consider , ) and no doubt the meetings aimed at by the statutes ; to a lodge as a Avorkshop ; directing " the most cunning to
be governor of the work ancl to be called master ;" -taking of apprentices ; workmanship ; brotherly love ; moral conduct ; punishment of offenders ; and observances of their " articles and points , " or bye-laws as they may be termed , many of which appear very similar to the precepts contained in the identures of
apprentices of the last century . There are not any references to secret signs ( in Germany these are not supposed to haA'e been usen until 1452 ); or to mason ' s marks—monograms , as they might be properly called . Upon this question , however , though probably it will be said by some that I know nothing about the matter I consider , Avith others , that Avhilst such marks as were made by the ancient masons , often took the place of a proper sign manual to a document , they
then , as now , when placed on a stone , merely designated the stone Avhich each man had worked . Occasionally a double mark is observable , one being supposed to be that of the foremen under Avhom the mason worked , the other that of the workmen himself , so that by these marks , in case of wrong or defective workmanshipthe mason who had to make
, his work good could at once be kuoAvn . Erom a feAV observations recently made , it has been ascertained that a series of marks are found upon buildings erected Avithin a short distance of each other , proving the employment of the same set of Avorkmen at each place . The Lady Chapel of Ely Cathedral , ancl St .
Stephen ' s Chapel , Westminster , were contemporaneous buildings , and offer a reliable instance Avhere some of the Avorkmen Avere engaged upon both structures . To refer to other trades , the carpenters used marks down to as late as 1597 ; Avhile the Cooper ' s Company , in 1758 issued particular marks to the members of
, their trade . Merchant ' s marks are Avell knoAvn to have existed during the Mediaeval period , if not equally employed by them now ; and rarely can a black-letter oook be opened Avithout one or two belonging to the author or printer being seen .
As there now only remains to be detailed a portion of my subject not closely connected AA'ith what has heen given , I venture to offer a few observations on some of the important points elucidated by this enquiry . The first is the very noteAvorthy fact , that the master masonthough obtained occasionallou
, y the spot , appears to have been sought for in some far distant localit y , very similar to the architects of the present clay . Besides what the documents of Salisbury prove , there is one remarkable instance of this AA'hich
I have not stated . A cementarius , named Durandus , employed from 1214 to 1251 upon Rouen Cathedral , is knoAvn to have been sent for by the Abbot of Beaulieu , * in Hampshire , ancl that he came over is presumed from the circumstance that it required the king ' s authority to release 21 burellosf belonging to
Durandus , Avhich were detained at Southampton . Many of the master masons appear to have realised property , and to have lands at their disposal ; they appear to have insisted upon comfortable habitations while at work , to say nothing of the donation of a gown , furred or otherwise , a practice which has been
noticed as occurring carry in the fourteenth century ( 1321 ) , and is knoAvn to haA'e been a common reward in the Mediawal ages to the household retainers . The first donation of a livery to the king ' s clerk of the Avorks , yet ascertained , Avas in 1391 . Tunics , aprons , gloves , 1355 , and clogs or shoes , appear to have been the necessaries found for those of secondary and lower
classes . That they Avere considered men of repute may be inferred from the fact that the clergy were often associated Avith them in the contracts , apparently in the place of sureties . These contracts , ancl the statutes likewise , distinctly shoAV that the Mediawal masons Avorked not only by the day , but
they were accustomed to take work by the piece : in one instance measured work is mentioned , 1306 , and even large contracts Avere taken , sometimes under "heaA'y penalties . " They were generally bound , though not always so , not to attend at any other building ; Avhile on the other hand , the statutes clearly show
that they kneAV how to look after their own interests , when they did not feel disposed to submit to the " dictation" of their employers , or to be influenced b y the threats of the "haughty aristocracy" of the period . It woidd have been some satisfaction to have found a return of the "Registrar General" of the day , for I regret to say that the average period during Avhich each master mason held his office at York was
only twelve years . Shall Ave speculate whether this shortness of time arose from his discharge consequent on slack work ? or from being an elderly man before his merits were discovered and office bestowed ? or from dying early through injuries natural to his pursuits ? Some of the agreements would lead us to form the latter opinion as the most probable one . HaA'ing thus described most of the important features connected AA'ith these illustrious men and
their trade , their designations will UOAV be noticed , as the titles exhibit some peculiarities that do not appear to be easy of explanation . It may perhaps lie a matter of surprise that this was not attempted in the earl y portion of the paper , but being desirous of keeping all the designations together , and some of
them being necessarily reserved for the conclusion , they are now introduced . That these Mediaeval terms are not yet clearly comprehended , may be gathered from an amusing quotation lately brought before me , iu the case of Richard of WoE'eston , cited as a" prudens architectus" in a register of the period -of
Bishop Pudsey of Durham , early in the twelfth century . In a charter relating to an exchange of lands , this Richard is styled " ingeniator , " and the translator commenting upon the term , writes , " Dick the Snarer