Full disclosure: This is a project that my father, the current Worshipful Master of St. John’s Lodge, #1, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, has been working on for a couple years. He has taken hundreds of neat, old Masonic images from sources such as antique Masonic books and digitally re-mastered them so that they can be used without the jagged “clip-art” look of so much stuff out there. He then puts the re-mastered images on a wide variety of products, including (my personal favorite) t-shirts. I think the results are terrific — a great combination of old-timey designs and clean, contemporary graphics. Check out his hundred of re-mastered and original designs, including Square and Compasses t-shirts for many Masonic jurisdictions here.
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 Masonic Memorial Temple Window Mural, San Fransisco Well known artist Emile Norman has died at the age of ninety-five. While not, to my knowledge, a Freemason himself, he did create the famous four story window mural for the Masonic Memorial Temple in San Francisco back in the fifties. The method for creating the window is fascinating. The process, invented by Norman himself, is called “endo-mosaic” and involves suspending pieces of colored glass and other material between sheets of plastic to create a stained-glass type window.  Masonic Wall Sculpture He also created the terrific raised relief sculpture that adorns an outer wall of the temple building. Read the full LA Times obituary here. (Masonic mural photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/andyb/ / CC BY 2.0) With 142,468 views, Howie Damron’s “Masonic Ring” is a bonafide youtube hit. Strong work, Brother Damron!
Although not a Freemason himself, he says of the piece
The AU $40,000.00 first prize he received for this winning entry in the 26th Annual Telstra National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Award wasn’t too shabby either. Read the story here. The legend of a long-hidden Masonic treasure has caused much speculation over years, and even inspired a big budget Hollywood movie. But there was at least one real-life Masonic treasure, the story of which is just as interesting and tragic as anything movie writers could dream up: The large collection of Masonic items the Nazis looted from Masonic lodges during World War II. Contrary to what some conspiracy theorists say, the Nazis were in no way affiliated with Freemasonry. In fact, they actively oppressed German Freemasons by arresting Masonic officers and looting valuable Masonic regalia, jewels and historic records from the lodge halls. Fearing for their safety, German Freemasons suspended the work of the Craft. In a subtle act of solidarity, they often planted or wore forget-me-not flowers as a reminder to their Brethren that the Craft was still alive and awaiting a time when it could again flourish. As a result, forget-me-nots are a universally recognized symbol of Freemasonry.  forget-me-nots World War II eventually ended, of course, and Freemasons were again able to practice the Craft in Germany. But for years, the stolen Masonic valuables were missing. That is, until researchers discovered the treasure in Russia where it had languished in archives for more than 60 years. To read more about how the treasure was stolen, discovered and returned to its rightful owners, check out this article. Modern Freemasonry emerged in part from the Medieval stone guilds that built the great cathedrals of Europe, so it’s no surprise that there are many spectacular masonic buildings worldwide. Historically, however, masonic buildings have been closed to the public due to the private nature of the Fraternity. But thanks to the internet, anyone may now peek inside some of these magnificent edifices via online tours. Here are some eye-popping ones:
Follow these links to check out some cool New York Masonic Items and Masonic t-shirts! The Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania
Follow these links to check out some cool Pennsylvania Masonic Items and Masonic t-shirts! The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts
Follow these links to check out some cool Massachusetts Masonic Items and Masonic t-shirts! Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, House of the Temple
Follow these links to check out some cool Scottish Rite Masonic Items and Masonic t-shirts!
Follow these links to check out some cool Japan Masonic t-shirts! The only thing missing are the Brethren Freemasons bedecked in their masonic regalia! |
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This is cool. Australian artist Danie Mellor has combined the symbols of an 1800’s engraving depicting a Masonic Lodge with aboriginal imagery to create this unique and award winning piece of art.
