Category Archives: Other

Cedar

The Tall Cedars of Lebanon International is a side degree of Freemasonry in certain Grand Jurisdictions, open to Master Masons in good standing in a regular Masonic Lodge. Its motto, “Fun, Frolic, & Fellowship,” is indicative of this social bent. Its members are distinguished by the pyramid-shaped hats they wear at their functions. The name is derived from the cedars of Lebanon that King Solomon used to build his Temple. (Wikipedia)

Square, Compasses, UC

Square, Compasses and the letters UC, which stand for Union Compagnonnique. An emblem of the Compagnonnage. This is a French (and German) ‘operative Masonry’ type organisation.

Compasses and Crown?

The letters C.M.D.D. stand for Compagnons Menuisiers du Devoir which means something like ‘members of the guild’. The Compagnonnage is a French (and German) ‘operative Masonic’ like organisation.

Chain

The chain with three links is the embled of the International Order of Odd Fellows. Not Freemasonry, but a similar organisation.

Scimitar

The Ancient Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, also known as Shriners, is not Freemasonry, but an aligned order.

Inverted Pentagram

The inverted pentagram is often food for conspiracy nuts, but what you see above is simply the logo of the Order of the Eastern Star (and the plan of their “chapter room”, see below), an appendent body for Freemasons and their female relatives. They have a different ritual and symbolism from Freemasonry. There exist a whole range of variations to this pentagram in the OES. In this basic form, the symbols refer to the positions and symbols of the officers. The jewels of the officers have their own specific emblem in the middle.

Continue reading