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What is the History of my
Grand Lodge Certificate? If you wondered
what history lay behind the design, grant and purpose of your Masonic lodge
certificate, or perhaps wanted more research to freshen up the presentation
of a Grand Lodge certificate, then this page is for you. Please feel free
to borrow any material on this page for a lecture within your lodge, but if
using any images, please ascribe thanks to the Library and Museum at United Grand Lodge of
England who hold copyright for all of them. The library will be happy to
provide higher resolution images upon request at their reasonable rates. INTRODUCTION Let me take you back to the night you were
presented with your Grand Lodge Certificate. Hopefully that evening your
certificate would have been presented by a senior mason in your lodge,
broadly in accordance with the form suggested by Bro OC Klagge in the back of
the blue Emulation book. Perhaps the symbolism it contains was explained to
you and you were also told that the certificate, like our ritual, has
remained virtually unchanged since 1819? However, you were probably not told that
your certificate had in fact undergone radical change over the last three
centuries, that its history was closely intertwined with the politics within early
Freemasonry and that to our Masonic ancestors, possession of a certificate
was often an invaluable insurance against the uncertainties of the 18th
Century and it might even on occasion have made the difference between life
and death. HISTORY Like so many of our Masonic customs and
heritage, the exact origins of Grand Lodge certificates have been obscured
through passage of time. However, the first mention of the requirement for a
Masonic certificate stems from an entry in one of the “Old Charges” called
the Grand Lodge No. 2 MS which is dated around 1650. Part of this MS states:- ‘That no person hereafter which shall be accepted free
mason shall be admitted into any lodge or assembly until he have brought a
certificate of ye time and acception from ye lodge that accepted him unto ye
master of that limit and vision where such lodge was kept ..’ This was in an era before any Grand Lodges
were conceived and so any official certificates, if actually produced, must
have been prepared by private lodges. In my view, given the well known
Masonic personalities and Antiquarians of the time including Sir Robert Moray
(initiated in 1641), Alias Ashmole (1646), and Dr Stukeley (1721), it is
likely that had any documents resembling private lodge certificates been
issued before the formation of Premier Grand Lodge in 1717, they would have
emerged by now. The existence of private lodge certificates however, even if
in embryonic form, cannot be dismissed completely. At this point, it is worth putting the
growth of modern Freemasonry into perspective: In 1717, four London lodges combined to
form Premier Grand Lodge, one of them being Lodge No. 4 with around 70
speculative, gentlemen members and the other three lodges, being partly
operative, having an average complement of 15 brethren each ie 115 freemasons
in all in the first wave. Doubtless
there were others lodges, who for their own reasons, refrained from joining
at the outset. By 1725, 52 lodges belonged to Grand Lodge and this number had
swollen to 175 by 1739. Clearly, controlling and managing this growth, the
brand of freemasonry and policing those who purported to have joined it must
have been challenging. In 1722, five years after the birth of
Premier Grand Lodge, Masonic certificates are mentioned again, this time in
the Roberts Pamphlet. The text of this pamphlet repeated sections from Grand
Lodge MS No. 2 specifying the requirement for freemasons to provide
certificates proving membership when visiting other lodges. However, we still
have no hard evidence of certificates actually being produced. This is probably because Freemasonry, in
those early years, was struggling to establish itself and not capable of
developing higher administrative functions like certification, particularly
if membership records are a guide. Membership records of Premier Grand Lodge
submitted by those lodges that chose to do so between 1723 and 1725 show that
the individual membership attrition rate was quite high with net losses by
two of the four founding lodges being perilous. It would therefore seem unlikely that they
would have spare energy and resources to implement a system of certification
on any official basis. A few years later in 1738, Dr James Anderson
published a much revised version of his ‘Constitutions’. His ‘Constitutions’
essentially started life as a private work in 1723. The “Constitutions”
repeat the Old Charges, recant a colourful history of Freemasonry and
received critical acclaim within Premier Grand Lodge. However, even Anderson
made no fresh mention of the requirement for visitors to bear official
certification when visiting lodges. This is surprising because recent
exposures (for example ‘A Mason’s Examination’ published in 1723 in the Flying
Post and Prichard’s ‘Masonry Dissected’ published in 1730) are known to have
caused Premier Grand Lodge considerable difficulties with irregular masons
attempting to gain admission and to make unwelcome claims on their charity.
Instead of clamping down on cowans and opportunists by developing a system of
certification, Premier Grand Lodge decided to bar them by scrambling some of
the ritual that had been revealed to the public. A few years later, in 1751, Premier Grand
Lodge, keen to further distance itself from any Jacobian association and fed
up with the continuing heavy influx of itinerant masons, generally from
Ireland and Scotland, as well as irregulars “made” in London Taverns for 2
shillings 6d a time, decided to bar them altogether by transposing the
passwords in the First and Second degree. This prompted such outrage within
Freemasonry that some lodges broke away and set up the Antient Grand Lodge of
England. We are now in the era when freemasonry was
governed by two rival Grand Lodges: Premier Grand Lodge (“Moderns”) using
newly adapted passwords and the Antient Grand Lodge of England (“Antients”),
the group that broke away to practice the ritual and passwords as they were
originally conceived. So which of the two Grand Lodges were the
first to produce Grand Lodge certificates? The first documented evidence of English
Grand Lodge certificates takes the form of a record in the minutes of Moderns
in July 1755 when it was ‘ordered that every certificate granted to a brother of
his being a mason shall for the future be sealed with the seal of masonry and
signed by the GS for which 5 shillings shall be paid to the use of the
general charity’. To add weight to this entry, the minutes
conclude with receipt of 10 shillings “received for two brethren going abroad
of their being masons’. Interestingly, further proof comes from a
surprising source, namely Laurence Dermott, secretary of the Antients Grand
Lodge, their rivals, who wrote in their minutes ‘This year 1755, the Modern Masons began to make use of
certificates: Though the Antient
masons had granted certificates (from) time immemorial’. Given that at the time the minute was
written, the Antients had only been established for four years, we can only
conclude that Dermott’s remark bore a degree of licence and probably referred
to the Itinerant Irish and many independent “Old Masons” in the provinces who
never joined up with Premier Grand Lodge. As an aside, Laurence Dermott had in fact
presented his own Irish certificate at a meeting of the Antients Grand Lodge
in 1757 when requested to provide proof of his bona fides in order to refute
an allegation that he was irregular. Sadly, we do not have that certificate
and therefore do not know the date it was issued; given he was initiated in
1741, we can nevertheless be tempted to speculate that if the certificate had
survived, it would have been the oldest lodge certificate in Masonic history. Either way, these are the first references
and proofs of the existence of English Grand Lodge certificates – the date:
1755, over 250 years ago. So much for the History; what about the
certificates themselves …?
THE
‘THREE GRACES’ (Moderns: 1757 – 1809) The Moderns were the first to produce engraved
pictoral certificates. The oldest surviving certificate, which is in the
archives of UGLE, was issued to Jacob De Pinna in September 1767. The certificate is a work of beauty and it
was obviously intended to emphasise the respectability of this brand of
Freemasonry as an elevated form of social activity stressing Spiritual and
philosophical values. The certificate was very popular and its print run
lasted for more than 50 years. The form of the certificate depicts the
Three Graces, three women representing Faith Hope and Charity. It also
features a flying angel and a pillar representing each of the principal
orders of architecture, the Ionic column on the front left hand side with
Doric behind it. The Ionic column supports the figure of Faith holding the
VSL. The Corinthian column supports Hope, holding an anchor. The landscape
garden scene at the bottom depicts Charity, open handed, tending to three
small children. You will also see compasses and three moveable jewels. This
style was very popular, surviving a gradual process of dechristianising
freemasonry elsewhere until it was replaced around 50 years later. The cost
was 5 shillings. Purchase was optional.
Three Graces certificate
issued by the Moderns to Bro Jacob De Pinna in 1767 by Grand Secretary Samuel
Spencer. This is believed to be the oldest surviving example of a pictoral
Grand Lodge Craft certificate in the world and is held in the Library of
United Grand Lodge of England in London. THE ‘UNIVERSIS’ (Antients: 1766 – 1792) So what did the Antients produce? Well,
Laurence Dermott might have been an outstanding freemason and administrator,
but the certificate issued during his tenure as Grand Secretary was surprisingly
plain. It was called the Universis and
was first issued in 1766. In contrast to the rival Moderns
certificate, it is non pictoral, written in both English and Latin and was
probably based on a similar design in use by the Grand Lodge of Ireland at
the time. Why was this? At the time of formation of the Antients in
1751, six lodges signed up with a total complement of 80 brethren. Although
growth in membership was substantial from that point, in the early days,
Dermott would probably not have enjoyed a strong enough market to pay for a
more expertly designed certificate. Given that the well known masonic historian
Harry Carr believed most Antients were by trade mainly artisans, tailors, and
shoemakers ‘of an honest character,
but low in circumstances’ and many were recent Irish immigrants, one can
understand that it was a product that had to be priced more competitively
than the Moderns certificate. The cost of the Universis certificate was one
shilling if written in English only and two shillings if in Latin and
English. A key distinguishing characteristic of this
certificate is the use of Latin. In contrast, Moderns’ certificates were not
written in Latin. The benefit of
including Latin seems lost on us these days, but in the mid 18th century,
it would have added a touch of prestige, as well as possibly being understood
by educated classes in those parts of the world where English was not in use.
The Universis
certificate issued by the Antients to Bro Edward Abbott in 1767 and signed by
Laurence Dermott. THE ‘1st & 2nd
ANGEL’ (Antients: 1792 – 1810) The Universis print run lasted for some 25
years until the Antients developed a pictorial design called the Angel. The
Angel had two print runs, the first from 1792 to 1810 and then the “Second
Angel” design which ran up to 1813. The differences in 1st and 2nd
were very minor - a restyled heading, the addition of fluting to the
Corinthian column and the compasses interlace with the square. On examining the First Angel you will see
the design shares certain characteristics with the Moderns certificate,
namely that it depicts a flying female angel with the Graces, Faith, Hope and
Charity with Faith and Hope on columns. Curiously however, the flying angel
faces the opposite direction to the Moderns “Three Graces” certificate. Given
that so much of this certificate is obviously based on the Moderns design,
this difference is significant although the actual reason for it is no longer
clear. Perhaps it alludes to the differences between the Antients from the
Moderns whom you will recall transposed the modes of recognition in the First
and Second degrees? The columns are in the same arrangement as
are Faith (helmeted and no VSL), Hope (no anchor) and Charity. The Doric
column has a plumb rule and trowel against the plinth whilst the Corinthian
column has a level, square and compasses. The text is in English and Latin.
The 1st
Angel certificate issued by the Antients to Bro Isaac Wise in 1792. Bro Wise
used this certificate in his unsuccessful attempt to petition for charity in
1813. His petition was denied and his certificate retained by the Antients
and now resides in the Library of United Grand Lodge of England. For further
details, refer to the section on Charity. The ‘St PAUL’S’ (Moderns and Post Union: 1810 – 1819) Reverting back to the Moderns, we find that
after a run of 52 years, they replaced their “Three Graces” certificate in
1810 with something quite radical – the St Paul’s certificate. One can hardly imagine a more iconic scene
of London, its power, might and its sheer scale, nor that matter a scene so
reminiscent of achievement by operative Freemasons on rebuilding London with
such splendour after it was destroyed by the Great Fire of London. Let us first examine the detail on the
certificate: It shows a view of St Paul’s cathedral and a host of other
churches in the background built by Quite why this unusual design was
commissioned is not really understood but there are several theories: At the
time it was first printed in 1810, it was (wrongly) believed that its issue
coincided with the Centenary for the completion of St Pauls by one of
Freemasonry’s most famous sons, Christopher Wren and the many operative and
speculative freemasons who worked on it during its construction spanning some
35 years. It could also have been issued as a tribute to Robert Mylne, a
prominent Scottish Freemason who built Blackfriars Bridge to critical acclaim
(because of his innovative use of new elliptical arch design) just over 40
years earlier (1769) and looked after St Pauls for 50 years. Mylne died in
1811. It might even have been in celebration of 150 years of the birth of
Nicholas Hawksmoor, Wren’s protégé, who is believed to have been born in
1661. Whatever the reason, the design was
considered to be of sufficient importance to enable it to have survived the
undoubtedly tricky negotiations between Antients and Moderns leading to
Unification in 1813. This certificate was finally replaced in 1819.
The St Pauls certificate
issued by the Moderns to Thomas Perry in 1813. This certificate is currently
the oldest example of a certificate issued to the lodge now known as Royal
Somerset and Inverness Lodge No. 4 and is held in the Library of United Grand
Lodge. THE
‘THREE PILLARS’ (UGLE: 1819 - Present) By 1819 the St Paul’s certificate had served
its purpose and was in need of replacement to reflect the new Union, new
focus and adopt a new role within Masonic usage. Its replacement is the now familiar “Three
Pillars” certificate. It is a composition incorporating the three Principal
Orders of Architecture and various emblems from the 5th section of
the First Lecture. In contrast with the St Pauls certificate, the design of
the Three Pillars was clearly heavily influenced by the Antients with the
characteristic incorporation of both Latin and English and a somewhat
clumsily inserted “Ne Varietur” signature box. What the certificate lacks in pictoral
splendour and the philosophical importance of its predecessors, it makes up
for in its use and importance in respect of masonic allegory. The principal symbolic components comprise
an Ionic column in the centre (representing the WM), the Doric column on the
left hand side (representing the SW), and Corinthian on the right hand side
which represents the JW. The certificate also depicts the three moveable and
three immoveable jewels, the globes, ornaments, chequered pavement and furniture
of a freemasons lodge. Interesting changes to this certificate since
the initial design include dropping Latin in 1965 and changing the number of
graduations in the ruler from 24 down to 16 – although no one knows quite why
except perhaps to make the statement that it is not a working tool, but
rather a jewel as per the 1st Lecture, 5th section.
This might also explain why the skirret which is a wt and not a jewel, was
not included.
The Three Pillars
certificate, issued six years after Union. This certificate was issued by
United Grand Lodge of England to Bro John Selly in 1819 and is the earliest
example in the records of the Library at United Grand Lodge, London. The evolution of
English Craft certificates is summarised in the timeline below.
Put simply, the Moderns were the first
English Grand Lodge to issue engraved pictoral certificates. On balance, they
also seem to have a higher degree of flair and elegance in their
draughtsmanship. It is also surprising to see that the Antients, on Union,
abandoned their Angel certificate to adopt the St Paul’s certificate. Given
the strong resonance the St Paul’s certificate has with London, its adoption
must have caused the Antients significant resentment until it was replaced
with the three pillars certificate six years after Union. Some other rival Grand Lodges in England
issued certificates during their comparatively brief existence. It is known
that certificates were issued by York Grand Lodge (1725 -1791) in the form of
a manuscript certificate which was then replaced by an unusual engraved
certificate. Wigan Grand Lodge (1823 – 1913) also issued a certificate which
was, in effect, a rough copy of the Angel certificate. CERTIFICATES
– How They Were Obtained We have seen what they look like, so how
were they obtained? Although both private lodges and Grand
Lodges issued certificates of membership since 1755 (arguably, Private Lodge
certificates being issued from at least 1745), unlike in modern times, it was not
automatic for a newly made brother to be issued with a Grand Lodge
certificate. In fact, it seems to have been the exception. The usual procedure
for obtaining one required the lodge secretary to write to the Grand
Secretary enclosing a brother’s private lodge certificate and exchanging it
for a Grand Lodge certificate. Individual lodges did not automatically apply
for Grand Lodge certificates unless their respective brethren had a pressing
need to obtain one, usually for reasons of travel. Interestingly, there is a letter in UGLE
archives from the Provincial Grand Lodge of Somerset to the Moderns Grand
Secretary, William White dated July 1785 requesting a fresh stock of two
dozen ready signed blank Grand Lodge certificates, especially for seafaring
brethren. In those days it seems brethren could be made in batches and then
be off on travel abroad immediately thereafter. Sadly, there is no reply on
file, but given it was known this practice was frowned upon by foreign Grand
Lodges who considered it allowed too many inappropriate people to join their
assemblies, the request was probably granted. To understand why there were comparatively
few applications for Grand Lodge certificates relative to the overall size of
the fraternity, one needs to appreciate that Premier Grand Lodge did not even
register new initiates at Grand Lodge level until 1768. In fact, Grand Lodge certificates were not
actually issued as a requirement until 1818. At the same time, Grand Lodge
also then stated that the purpose of private lodge certificates, by then
widely issued in a variety of designs, should be limited to confirming proof
of membership when obtaining a Grand Lodge certificate. CERTIFICATES
– Their Purpose I believe there were three key reasons for
issuing certificates: Recognition, Charity and Revenue. Recognition This is probably the prime purpose of
certification – to act as a kind of Masonic passport and thereby preclude
cowans who might have picked up a few passwords and be able to trick their
way into Masonic circles. By the early to mid
18th Century Freemasonry had spread far and wide over the face of
earth and water and the exposures in that period had given away far too many
secrets; a more rigorous form of proof was required to prohibit entry only to
those who were entitled. Indeed, as explained earlier, Laurence Dermott
himself was obliged to produce his Irish Grand Lodge certificate to the Antients
Grand Lodge in 1757 to refute a charge of irregular membership. The ability
to prove one’s Masonic bona fides when travelling around the country or
abroad was essential. We know that certification was an effective
method of policing lodges, but secretaries and wardens still had to be on the
look out for forgeries and fake certificates when admitting strange brethren.
In one suspected case of forgery, William Thomas, secretary of Jerusalem
Lodge No 162 wrote an indignant letter to the Antients Grand Secretary,
Robert Leslie, in January 1802 asking him to investigate the certificate of a
certain Moses Aurabas. Bro Aurabas had sought charity from Jerusalem lodge
and on careful examination of his Grand Lodge certificate, their brethren
concluded from the errors it contained that it had to be ‘a flagrant
imposition or a very reprehensible blunder’. The draft reply from Grand Secretary Robert
Leslie is interesting for three reasons. First, it indicates that Grand
secretaries can make mistakes for Robert Leslie admits he made some drafting
errors on the certificate. Second, Bro Leslie confirms he issued Moses
Aurabas with a Grand Lodge certificate in exchange for his private lodge
certificate, thereby confirming beyond doubt the process by which they were
obtained. Finally, the last paragraph of Robert Leslie’s letter is
interesting because it tells us that Brother Moses was in the process of
making at least his fourth petition for charity. He was a well known and
persistent petitioner; just the sort of Mason that so aggravated the Moderns
in their early years.
Charity. Those brethren who travelled around the
country or abroad on business or even to start a new life were likely to
require assistance from time to time. By the mid 18th Century, the
overwhelming charitable burden placed on Freemasonry by itinerant masons was
such that the rules had to be tightened else their reserves would be rapidly exhausted. The Moderns introduced certificates in 1757
which no doubt stemmed the flow of opportunistic charitable claims.
Surprisingly, the Antients were slower to introduce this measure, but
nevertheless were under such pressure to dispense relief to itinerant Irish
masons that in 1762 they ordered all petitioners from Ireland to produce
proper certificates or recommendations from the Grand Secretary of Ireland
before they could be admitted a member and receive charity. It therefore cannot be underestimated how
important possession of a certificate would have been to a freemason found in
grief and distress far from home. The possession of a certificate, more
particularly a Grand Lodge certificate with the weight and authority of a
national institution behind it, was an invaluable insurance against sudden or
unexpected distress. Moses Aurobas and his four attempts to claim
charity from the Antients have already been mentioned, but the following
cases from the Antients Grand Lodge minutes are also worth recording:- June 1731: Then the Petition of William Kemble was
read, but he not appearing, nor satisfaction given to the Grand Lodge on how
long he had been made a regular Mason, the same was dismissed. No doubt proof
of membership by way of certification would have been invaluable to Bro
Kemble, but at the time of his petition, there was no such system in place. February
1813: Isaac Wise, certified on
10 June 1798, now a prisoner in the Fleet, has been seven years in Newgate
Prison. A Brother on the Charity Committee reported that he knew the
petitioner to be a man of ‘base character’.
Although it was not unheard of to relieve Masonic prisoners,
(particularly if their incarceration was a result of debt), Bro Wise’s
damning character assessment sealed his fate: His application was unanimously
rejected and his certificate was ordered to be detained. Sadly for Bro Wise
he was never reunited with his certificate which is still held in Grand Lodge
archives. Records from Proceedings at the Old Bailey suggest that, a year
later, he was found guilty of counterfeiting banknotes and sentenced to 14
years Transportation to Australia. By contrast, Premier Grand Lodge (the
“Moderns”) seemed not to have demanded certificates when hearing petitions;
instead, they were satisfied if petitioners were found to be registered in
their books and passed a charitable interview. Interestingly, their charity
committee minutes do not record anything like such a heavy burden of relief,
particularly from itinerant petitioners from Ireland and Scotland and were
fairly dismissive when faced with them. In one infamous case, in 1759, William
Carroll, a mason from Ireland, not knowing the difference between the Moderns
and Antients made the unfortunate mistake of petitioning the wrong “camp” and
sought relief from the Moderns. Their
Grand Secretary, Samuel Spencer, wrote a letter of refusal saying ‘Your being an Antient Mason, you are not entitled to
any of our charity’. The story has a happy ending though: In the
end, Bro Carroll was relieved by the Antients to the amount of five Guineas;
in return, he handed the Antients Secretary the infamous letter of rejection
he received from the Moderns. No doubt its propaganda value to the Antients
would have been substantial. Revenue Early Grand Lodge records from 1755 show
that when charity collections were gathered from each lodge attending
quarterly communications, the largest line item would often be proceeds from
sale of Grand Lodge certificates. Though clearly not the chief motivation for
issuing Grand Lodge certificates, the importance of the revenue stream
derived from their sale should not be overlooked. Although it is unlikely that much financial
analysis went into this enterprise before production, Premier Grand Lodge did
in fact obtain a quote for the engraving, the press and the vellum for the
initial batch of certificates. The budget was estimated to be seventeen
Guineas but the eventual cost was slightly higher, possibly at around 20
Guineas. We know from Premier Grand Lodge records that they sold over 85
certificates in the first two and a half years which would have been
sufficient to recoup the initial capital expenditure. From that point on, if
you ignore the cost of vellum, the revenue for each certificate sold at 5
Shillings a time would have been all profit. By the time the Antients produced
certificates in 1766, they had eighty eight affiliated lodges which suggests
there would have been a ready market for the sale of certificates, especially
as they were priced at a more modest two shillings. CONCLUSION The date most likely to herald the first
English Grand Lodge certificates is possibly 1755 and certainly by 1757 when
the Three Graces was first issued. It seems possible that some private lodge
certificates and probable that Irish Grand Lodge certificates were in
circulation prior to the Three Graces certificate issued by the Moderns in
1757, although none seem to have survived. You will have seen that all the
certificates, save for the Universis, have a rich pictoral design content and
are packed full of allegory based on philosophical, moral and architectural
virtues and draw their inspiration from the 4th and 5th
Sections of the First Degree Lecture. You will have seen that these certificates
played an essential part in barring cowans to Freemasonry in the early years
and were invaluable aid for Freemasons to claim charity should they or their
widows be in distress. They were also an important source of additional
revenue, perhaps more for the Moderns than Antients, in view of their pricing
structure. And finally, in comparatively recent times,
you will have seen that our familiar “Pillars” certificate still retains the
significance of their predecessors and is also now a useful tool for Masonic
learning which was probably the intention when the design was first proposed.
In that regard it has served a very useful purpose for nearly two hundred
years and with the blessing of the Almighty Architect, it will no doubt
continue to do so for many years to come. THE LETTERS “AL” ON A LODGE CERTIFICATEThe letters “AL” evident on contemporary certificates,
according to United Grand Lodge of England, stand for Anno Lucis (“The Year
of Masonic Light”). Those letters did not appear on any lodge certificates
until @ 1780 and it was not until the “St. Pauls” certificate design issued
from 1810 that they became a consistent feature on certificates. The first Grand Lodge certificates were usually dated with
the words “Anno Domini” and “Year of Masonry”. The initials “AL” first came
into masonic existence (but not on lodge certificates) in 1725. At the time,
they probably stood for “Anno Latomorum” rather than “Anno Lucis”. The Latin word “Latomorum” is
derived from Greek meaning “of Stone-cutters” or in modern parlance, “of
masons”. The letters “Anno Lat” were first discovered on a set of three
jewels presented in 1732 to Dr. Richard Rawlinson of Castle Lodge. The first masonic reference to “Anno Lucis” however was
not made until 1772 when Preston in his tome, “Illustrations of Masonry”
referred to a lodge banqueting hall door which bore an inscription which
included the date “Anno Lucis 5765”. United Grand Lodge obviously now
considers “AL” to stand for “Anno Lucis”, but is there anything in their
history to confirm this? No. If one studies the Articles of Union, the date
given is “25th day of November, in the Year of our Lord, 1813, and of
Masonry, 5813”. No “Anno Lucis”- and indeed no “A. L.”. Nevertheless, with a
little imagination, the modern interpretation of “AL” and “An Lat” (ie “the
Year of Masonic Light” versus “the Year of Masons”) are broadly similar. I urge those seeking serious academic research to read the
sources from which this article is derived and if possible, visit UGLE’s
Freemasons’Hall museum in London to see some of the wonderful certificates
and documents they hold. Quatuor Coronati’s details and those of the United Grand Lodge of
England may be found on the www.oelodge.org links page.
Sources Colin Dyer, Some
Thoughts on the origins of speculative masonry AQC Vol 95, 1982. P 140 Jasper Ridley,
The Freemasons. Trevor Stewart, English Speculative Freemasonry. AQC Vol 117 Appendix
II, Bernard Jones, Freemasons’ Guide and Compendium T Haunch, AQC Vol 82, 1969 Harry Carr, The
Freemason at Work, 7th edition, Prestons Illustrations of Masonry, 1812 Edition, P 202 & “The
History of Freemasonry” by RF Gould Vol 2 The
Proceedings of the Old Bailey Ref: t 18121028-27. Isaac Wise, offences
against the King: Coining, Quatuor Coronatorum Antigrapha Volume XI Quatuor Coronatorum Antigrapha Volume XII With
acknowledgements and thanks to the United Grand Lodge of England and their
Museum staff for kindly granting copyright permission to reproduce the
masonic certificates featured in this article. I ask that readers respect
this copyright by not reproducing this article without seeking our consent. |
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