By Ward
K. St. Clair
Past
Master, Lodge of United Services No. 1118, New York, and a Past High Priest of
his Chapter.
Major,
United States Signal Corps
Be
that as it may, the earliest record of the degree in the United States is
contained in the minutes of the Old Mark Lodge at Middleton, Connecticut, for
September 13, 1783. These minutes report
the formation of a Mark Lodge, under the sanction of St. John’s Lodge, by three
Mark Master Masons. This Mark Lodge
continued as an independent body until its merger with Washington Chapter on
August 12, 1812.
The
earliest record of the Mark Degree being conferred in a Masonic body as a
distinct ceremony is in the minutes of Portsmouth (England) Chapter of
Friendship for September 1, 1769. The
minutes state that two degrees, “Mark Mason” and “Mark Master,” were worked by
Thomas Dunckerly. The minutes also state
that Dunckerly had previously received these degrees, thus indicating they were
older than the above date.
The two-degree ceremony was again mentioned
in the minutes of St. Thomas Lodge No. 142, London, for August 14, 1777:
“Mark Mason (or Mark Man) being for Fellow
Craft and the Mark Master for Master Masons.”
The earliest known Scottish Mark minute is
that of Journeyman Lodge of Dumfries for October 8, 1770, which records the elevation
of a Brother to the Degree of Royal Arch Mason, and sets out a form of
certificate. In this certificate is the
reference to the Mark Master Mason.
The earliest record, so far discovered, of
the conferring of a Mark degree in Ireland is contained in a “Certificate of 27th
August 1775,” granted by the “Knights Templers” of Kindale, County Cork. In this certificate the recipient, James
Dennison, is styled a “Mark Mason.” The
present-day Mark degree of Ireland is based upon an American ritual, which John
Fowler received from Charleston, South Carolina, in 1826. On his recommendation, the ritual was adopted
by Lodge Two of Dublin. This is
considered by some historians to have been the introduction of the Keystone
into Ireland.
At
the present time, the degree is controlled in England by the Mark Grand Lodge
which is an independent body instituted in June, 1856. This body controls the degree of Mark Master
Mason and that of Royal Ark Mariner. In Scotland,
the degree is the first degree of a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons and is also
conferred upon Fellowcrafts in a Craft Lodge.
Either degree is recognized by the Grand Royal Arch Chapter. In Ireland, the degree forms the first degree
conferred in a Chapter of Royal Arch Masons.
Mark Masonry has no counterpart in the
Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, nor in its forerunner the Rite of
Perfection. Neither is there a reference
to it in the Rites of Memphis or Misraim.
In that curious rite known as the Ancient Order of Zuzimites we find two
degrees with titles indicating they are of the Mark series. These two degrees are the 4th,
entitled Zer Zuzimite, being the
first degree of Mark, and the fifty which is entitled Mark Master Zuzimite.
Speaking of the Mark series we find mention of a number of degrees which
either in name or legend can be identified as Mark degrees. Some of the degrees and the rites to which
they belonged are listed and briefly discussed in the following paragraphs.
In the Early Grand Rite, sometimes referred
to as the Early Grand Scottish Rite, we find numerous Mark degrees. The fifth is the Fellow Craft Mark, the sixth is the Marked Master, the twelfth is the Fugitive Mark, the thirteenth is the Link and Chain, and the twenty-sixth is the Knight of the Christian Mark.
In the rituals of this Rite published in
Scotland in 1903 we find a brief explanation or historical account of the
degree preceding each ritual. The explanation
for the Fellow Craft Mark states that
the degree was so named because it was originally conferred upon
fellow-craftsmen and at one time formed a part of that degree. This degree according to the ritual required
the candidate to present work of his own at the overseers’ stations for
inspection and was similar in character to work in the U. S. A.
Only one reference to the actual conferral
of the Fellow Craft Mark outside of a body of the Early Grand Rite exists and
there is some question whether or not the Early Grand Rite actually functioned
as a degree-conferring body. The
reference is found in the records of the Augusta Georgia Chapter and is
reported by Everett R. Turnbull in his pamphlet The Early History of the Royal Arch Degree, in the following
statement:
“A meeting was held in the Court House Nov.
9, 5790 and a Master’s Mark Lodge was opened for the purpose of conferring the
degree of ‘Fellow Craft Mark and Master Mark.’ ”
The sixth degree of the Rite, the Marked Master, deals with an incident
entirely absent from the degrees of Masonry known to the writer. This incident is the killing of a craftsman
by the name of Cavelum, by H. A. pushing a stone upon him from the north
gateway to the Temple. In sorrow of the
death of this man, who is reported to have been a kinsman of K. S., the north
gate was closed as a memorial.
The Fugitive
Mark is the twelfth degree of the Early Grand Rite and is claimed to have
been of very ancient origin. No
particular ceremony was used in conferring the degree. The lecture states that the degree was much
used in ancient times when the brethren were persecuted, as a means of sending
notices to one another and as a means of finding out who could be trusted.
The Link
and Chain was the thirteenth degree of the Early Grand Rite, and as the
lecture informs us, was at one time attached to the Fellow Craft Mark. Its history is based upon an event which
occurred during the building of the Temple.
A precious stone was said to have been lost by our G. M. K. S. during
one of his inspection trips through the Temple.
After considerable search, it was found by the craftsman who worked on
the keystone, and as this stone had not been put in place, K. S. caused the
craftsman to mark it, in addition to other marks, with the name of the jewel
which had been lost.
There was an old Link Mason degree used in Ireland about 1822. This degree was based on another legend than
the Link and Chain just discussed. The Irish Link Mason referred to the dream
of Jacob of a ladder extending from heaven to earth.
The Knight
of the Christian Mark which was the twenty-sixth degree of the Early Grand
Rite contained a different legend that the other Mark degrees. It referred to the guarding of the personage
of Pope Alexander by the Knights of St. John.
These men were especially chosen.
Several of the older exposes give a ritual for this degree which is
practically the same as that given in the collection of the Early Grand
Rite. There is a degree of the same name
controlled by the Grand College of Rites of America, Holy Royal Arch Knight Templar Priests. The degree was at one time under the control
of the Grand Commandery Knights Templar of New York, and some of the earlier
charters granted by that body mention the degree.
J. A. Grantham in his book An Introduction to Mark Masonry lists
the only reference to the Black Mark
so far discovered. He points out that
the letters H. T. W. S. S. T. K. S. appear on a Black Mark certificate issued
by the Grand Assembly of Knights of Edinburgh in 1821.
“Whether the formulary worked as really
known as the Black Mark Degree, some few copies of which have survived to our
times, or whether it was a ‘Rejection’ Marked, worked under the Aegis of Knight
Templar or Black Masonry, as it was, and often is, called, cannot be stated
with certainty. There is no representation
of a Keystone or Cube on the Certificate, but the letters are there, together
with a clearly defined Mark.”
Not much is known of the Markman today other than such a degree
existed at one time. The Markmen were
the Wardens at the building of King Solomon’s Temple.
According to notes in an old Mark Ritual
published by Albert Pike when he was Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme
Council, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, Southern Jurisdiction, there was a
French Mark Mason degree. The ritual
which Pike published was entitled “5th Degree of the Masonry of
York, Ancient Rite.” This ritual was
found in the archives of the Grand Lodge of Louisiana and came from the old
French Lodges in that state that have ceased to work. In the explanatory part of the ritual as
published, we find the statement:
“Among these are the rituals of Mark Mason,
Royal Arch, and Past Master, which are here translated, the original paging and
the characteristics of the manuscript being in all substantial respects
preserved, especially as regards the underscoring in red ink and the braces in
the margin; and the translation being as literal a possible.” **
Elsewhere in the explanation we find the
following information:
“As will be seen by the Ritual of Mark
Mason, the Bro. Heut de Lachelle copied that ritual from the book of ‘the Bro.
Fourt.’”
This Brother Fourtaud or Fourteau was, as
we have seen, the representative, in 1801, of the Lodge Reunion des Coeurs at Port-au-Prince, near the Lodge of the same
name at Jamaica, and he was then a Prince of the Royal Secret. He had been Master of the Lodge there, before
de Lachelle received his commission from France, which was before the beginning
of the French Revolution. It is not in
the least probable that he obtained the ritual of Mark Mason or Royal Arch from
the United States. It probably came to
him from Kingston; and as there were nineteen or more Royal Arch Masons, in
1801, in the Lodge Reunion des Coeurs
at Port-au-Prince, that degree must have been worked there for some time.
“The Rituals of Mark Mason and Royal Arch
are without date; but the fact that the former was copied from the book of the
Brother Fourtaud which carries its date back prior even to 1796.”
The degree, as given by the ritual,
apparently consisted of two parts. In
the first part the candidate enters the Lodge with a “stone as large as he can
carry.” He makes four journeys during
the course of which his work is rejected, he is requested to give some money,
he is obligated and the lodge is called to refreshment. Upon labor being resumed, the candidate is
given a lecture of explanation.
The ritual then refers to the work of the
second apartment which also consists of four journeys and the inspection and
rejection of the work. The Master makes
the final rejection, after which he asks the brethren present, “What is your
desire to respect of these Candidates?”
They decide to admit them and the obligation is given. An interesting statement in the opening of
the lodge in the second apartment is that of the Master, who says, raising his
hat,
“My Brethren the Lodge of Perfection of
Mark Mason is opened.”
A medal is presented to the candidate who
is told that
“...when a Mark Mason finds himself in need,
he sends his medal to a Bro. of the degree, asking him the assistance which he
needs.”
Another interesting Mark Mason ritual is
one in the Ragon collection “Rituel de la Maconneries de Royal-Arch.” The degree is the second of the series and
follows the Past Master. It is a
keystone degree. The ritual is very
simple as it consists of a demand for admission, an obligation, the giving of
the signs, grips, etc.
There are several degrees which bear a
reference to the Mark but which must remain names only unless future
investigation discovers additional information.
They are Mark Fellow-Mason, Cain’s Mark, Arch Mason, and Old Mark.
There is a reference to a Traveling Mark. This may refer to a degree by that name but
it more probably refers to the old Traveling Mark Lodge of Ashton-under-Lyne. This body had no stated meeting but
apparently met quarterly on a Sunday under the authority of some Craft Lodge.
Then there is the Knight of the Black Mark mentioned by Oliver in his Historical
Landmarks. No other mention of this
degree has been found. It may be that
Oliver was referring to the same degree that Grantham does when he mentioned
the Black Mark.
In Bristol we find some interesting
information regarding the Mark Degree.
Bristol is the seat of a number of very interesting degrees which are
worked at no other place in the world.
This place as interested in Masonry from an early date. Powell and Littleton in their book entitled Freemasonry in Bristol state:
"The
‘Mark’ was not treated as a separate Degree until after the ‘Union’ but the
secrets, or a substantial portion of them, were given in the course of the
Fellow Craft ceremony, of which it was considered a part. As is well known, our Bristol ritual has
remained practically unaltered for more than 100 years. The only change being the removal from the
ceremony of ‘passing’ of those passages which applied to the ‘Mark.’ The ‘Lectures’ on the Second Degree, which
has not been amended, could not today be fully explained by anyone who was not
a Mark Mason, and he, being mindful of his obligation, would omit that portion
when giving it in a Craft Lodge. We must
not comment upon these points at any length but it will be sufficient to say
that the craftsmen were taught how to claim their wages, and also the certain
and summary punishment which awaited all imposters who might present their
hands at the open wicket."
We do not know when the ‘Mark’ portion was
removed from the Craft working, but it was probably about 1815, when the Grand
Lodge Commission confiscated the minute-book of our Provincial Grand Lodge,
because it contained references to Degrees other than the Craft.
Brother Hughan when commenting on a paper
by F. G. Harmer published in the Transactions of the Leeds Installed Masters
Association states:
"The Ritual under which the Old York Mark
Lodge worked previous to its enrollment under the banner of the Grand Mark
Lodge of England was very different from that at present in use. It deals with the story of the King’s dream
and his permission to the Children of Israel to go to Jerusalem to join Mark
Masons in rebuilding the Temple at Jerusalem, and in some parts, especially the
historical part, approximates to the account given in the present ritual. The Lodge was opened with the usual Craft
Officers in the First and Second Degrees, and then proclaimed a Mark Lodge, with
the following officers: King, S.B.
(Shethar Bosnai), T.B. (Tatnai), Sojourner, I.G., O.G., Treas., & Secy.
"After the Mark ceremony was finished the
Mark Lodge as closed and the Craft Officers resumed their stations, and the
Lodge was then closed in the Second and First Degrees."
According to John Yarker in his Arcane
Schools,
"In the old arrangement, there was, as we
saw, two ceremonies of Mark Man and Mark Master, and at is early establishment
a cubic stone of the Craft was used, then changed to an Arch keystone. There was also a Fugitive Mark conferred upon
Royal Arch Masons, as well as a Christian Mark.
It has also been worked in conjunction with the Wrestle, the Link and
the Ark. One version which was practiced
in Yorkshire last century, say 1780, is based upon the older Red Cross of
Babylon and the Second Temple. The
ceremonies must have arisen from the discontinuance by the Speculative Masons
of the old Operative Mark. The Grand
Lodge of the Degree was established by Lord Leigh in June, 1856, and now has a
very numerous following. The present
ritual is a revision of an old Aberdeen one; in Scotland the Marks are often
hereditary."
If a connecting link is to be found between Speculative Masonry and the old Operative Masonry of the age of Guilds it may well be that Mark Masonry will provide that link. That however is a phase of the subject which needs further research before a definite answer can be given. The Transactions of the Manchester Lodge of Research (England) contains an interesting series of articles on the subject of the Mark Masonry of the Operatives and also of their Mark.
(Adapted from an article from The Royal Arch Mason, Volume I, Number 5, March 1944, pages 152 - 156)
*While
this was true in 1944, five more Mark Lodges were chartered by the Grand
Chapter of Pennsylvania beginning in 1991, bring the total up to seven. In addition, there are three Mark Lodges in
Ohio, and one in Utah.
**This
ritual is included in the book Reprints
of Old Rituals, published in 2015 by the Scottish Rite Research Society.
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