wm5806

Any maker's marks on the Duke of York Lodge item? Or hallmarks that we could use to date it? Thanks Richard

I know I'm a little late in responding to this 'challenge', but I can confirm that it is a Masonic jewel struck to commemorate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887. All Brethren in a Lodge under the United Grand Lodge of England (....and Wales!) at the time of the event would have been entitled to wear it. Hope that helps, Richard

Hi Dave Can't help you with the first one as it's definitely from the Buffaloes and not within my sphere of interest. However, the second one is not so obvious! There's no indication (AFAI can see) of affiliation to any specific fraternal order: no obvious emblems such as the square an compass etc, but the name and number don't tally with any English/Welsh/Scottish Masonic Lodge recorded. Can only think it might be from another fraternity (Oddfellows, Buffaloes, etc). Sorry it's not much help, but at least it rules out a Masonic connection. Regards, Richard

Nice item, but not from English Freemasonry, perhaps another country? Richard

Hi Rick Have just returned from our library where there's a good run of yearbooks for the period in which you're interested. F.G. Winward continued to be listed in the United Grand Lodge of England's yearbook as a subscribing member right through to the yearbook for 1975, but he was absent from the 1976/1977 book. So, he either died in 1974, after the data had been collected for the book, but before the cutoff for the 1976/1977 book (most likely), OR he could have resigned his membership during this same period and died later. However, given his high rank and position within our Grand Lodge, I suspect that he would not have resigned, but this is only a guess. Having narrowed it down a bit, I have just gone through the Index of Births, Marriages and Deaths for around then and found an entry for Frederick George Winward (born 20 Feb 1893), whose death was registered in the last quarter of 1974 at Cuckfield, West Sussex (between London and Brighton). Hope that helps, Richard

Absolutely correct - I didn't recognise it before.

Hi Jerome Thanks for the photograph - very nice - but I'm not convinced that the medals are masonic. There are two reasons for this: firstly, I don't recognise them although Scottish medals are different to English, nor do they have any obvious Masonic symbols; secondly, I wouldn't expect him to be wearing Masonic medals if he's not wearing the rest of his Masonic regalia (apron and, in Scotland, a sash as well). The crest on the sporran looks more like a clan emblem to me, but I'm no expert. Are there any other members of the list with knowledge of Scottish clan emblems? Regards Richard

Yes, their records are less than comprehensive for the UK, so wouldn't expect a great deal from them in S.L. Any genealogical societies there? R

Hi Rick Regret no address given at all. Have checked the British records of births, marriages and deaths for the 1970s and 1980s, but cannot find a mention of him, so suspect that he died overseas. Cannot see any similar records for Sierra Leone on the web - do you have any genealogical contacts there? I may have access to a full set of yearbooks in the near future and will check to see when he drops off the radar then. Regards Richard

Hi Rick Not sure how much I can find for you, but the first mention I find is that Lt Col Frederick George Winward CBE was appointed as District Grand Master for Sierra Leone on 7 Dec 1949, resigning the office in 1953. He was, prior to this appointment, Grand Inspector for the District from 1938-1949, so I suspect that they just 'upgraded' the highest office for the District from District Grand Inspector to District Grand Master. Winward is listed in the 1972 yearbook, but not in that for 1982-83, so he probably died (or resigned his membership) in the intervening period. Will keep digging... Regards Richard

It's a very healthy 51mm by 81mm (2 inches wide by about 3.2 inches high). By comparison, the 'standard' Chapter jewel sold currently in England is 1 inch across, and the 'large' size is 1.25 inches. Hope that helps, Richard

The S&C with a moon is, I think, a Junior Deacon's collar jewel. However, I may be wrong and it may be a Senior Deacon's. Any American Brother wish to set the record straight? Some of the very early Lodges in England used the sun and moon (without S&C) to denote a Deacon, this was replaced by Hermes/Mercury (in use around the beginning of the 19th century). Finally, the Deacon's dove came into use with (I think) the Union of the Antients and Moderns in 1813. Certainly it is easy to understand why Hermes/Mercury was used (messenger of the Gods), just as the dove was a messenger to Noah, but not sure of the origins of the sun and moon to denote the Deacons. Richard

You're bound to find one near you: http://www.mainemason.org/lodges/index.asp Best wishes, Richard

Which one? Richard

Yup, another here, although not so frequent a visitor to these boards nowadays. Richard Past Master, Lodge of St Peter in Exeter (5806), UGLE

Certainly is a nice book, but by no means the first. The major (English language) works of note have been: Worcestershire Masonic Medals by Rev. H. Poole (1939), a catalogue of Masonic medals in the museum of the Province of Worcestershire. The Medals (commemorative or historical) of British Freemasonry by Geo. L. Shackles (1901). Masonic Emblems and Jewels - Treasures at Freemasons' Hall, London by William Hammond (1917), the Curator at Grand Lodge. Centenary Warrants and Jewels by John Lane (1893), illustrating and explaining (most of) the pre-regulation Craft Centenary jewels. The Medals of the Masonic Fraternity, Described and Illustrated by William T.R. Marvin (1880), privately published in Boston with limited print run of 160 copies. The work describes over 700 Masonic medals from around the world and was augmented by a printed supplement in 1912. A further two books written by David Heathcote in the late 1990s describe the Festival Stewards jewels of the Royal Masonic Institute for Girls, and another volume for those of the Royal Masonic Institute for Boys, but Trevor's books is the first general one for nearly 60 years (since Poole). Algernon Tudor-Craig, the Curator of the Museum at Grand Lodge in London, compiled a three volume catalogue in the late 1930s which carried some illustrations, but not of the jewels, AFAIK. Richard

Hi all Precious little information on the composition of the medallion held between the glass and rim. Generally they are assumed to be gold-plated base metal (so intrinsically worth virtually nothing as scrap metal) and are incredibly common amongst Masonic jewels. I have seen hundreds (honestly, no exaggeration!) of these and perhaps just one percent of those have carried hallmarks. The hallmarks were on the reverse face and situated either side of the square and compass, quite apparent without having to dismantle the item. Anecdotally, I have heard of hallmarks on the rim of the medallion itself, but have not seen this for myself. All hallmarked medallions I have seen so far have been silver-gilt (i.e. gold electroplated coating onto solid sterling silver medallion), never seen or heard of a solid gold version. Depending on the testing method, or preparation for such, might give a false-positive result if testing the gold-plate, rather than any metal underneath. You can find these regularly on eBay where they fetch less than ?10 (US$20). In a more cynical frame of mind, I guess that if these (medallions) were solid gold, then they might sell for more than that just for their scrap value! Hope that helps, Richard

Hi Stu Thanks for the pictures. The medals (or "jewels", as we call them) are fairly common and of no significant monetary value, especially when compared to some of the military prices I have seen. Here in the UK, from where they originate, they sell for anything up to GBP5 each which is about CAN$10.50 (using www.xe.com). Obviously, such items would be rarer in Canada, but I guess there are fewer collectors for these in Canada too, so probably balances out. Hope that helps. Richard (wm5806)

Hi Roeland Thanks for your question and for straying from your usual areas. Masonic items are those that originate from or relate to Freemasonry (I think the Dutch word is 'Vrimetselarij'), which is a fraternal organisation that exists in almost every country in the world (notable exceptions being Communist and some Islamic states). The main focus of its membership, I suppose is in the United Kingdom, North America and Europe, although the former British Empire and Commonwealth countries (e.g. Australia and India) also have a fair number of Freemasons. A group of Freemasons meet together as a Lodge and they are organised by the Grand Lodge of that country, although organisation at a regional level does occur. The medals (we call them 'jewels') are awarded mainly for service to the Lodge, charitable contributions, celebrations (e.g. centenary of the Lodge) and to indicate rank in the organisation. Quite commonly they will have a square and compass on them, which is the most common symbol of Freemasonry. Jewels and medals have been worn by Freemasons for nearly 300 years. I hope that helps, but please come back if you would like further information, Richard

Hi Leigh Thanks for your photo - the enamel work looks very nice. However, I'm not altogether sure that it is a Masonic item for a couple of reasons: firstly, the lodge name and number don't tally up with anything on the list that I have although obviously (but rarely) they could have changed their name since then; secondly, and although nowhere near definitive, it is rare for a lodge item to have a red ribbon. For those reasons, I wondered whether the top bar gave any clues about the fraternal order from which this originated: is it from the Buffaloes, perhaps? Sincerely, WM5806

Hi John Thanks for your contribution to our quiet little section! I cannot definitively identify your jewel/medal, but I always (rightly or wrongly) associate the crossed gavels with the Orange Order which, I know, is/was active in Canada. Regards WM5806

Humber Please explain your last post, which I find very offensive. I'm not sure what in my previous post prompted you to write that but I would dearly like to know. Richard (WM5806)

Hi Not seen this site before, but rather pricey compared with a certain on-line auction! Base metal charity jewels are usually about ?5. Whilst the PZ jewel has an interesting inscription, it is rather plain, as they often are and probably why even silver ones only fetch about ?20-?25. I have a few Old English Night tankards that I would love to part with for ?10 Will certainly watch it to see what else turns up.

This links in quite nicely with a previous thread which illustrates jewels from several other fraternal orders and which use emblems also found in Freemasonry: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=6139 I can also vouch for the book mentioned by Buterbrodov (Welcome to our little group, by the way!), which is beautifully illustrated. Other books for collectors of Masonic jewels were the subject of another thread: http://gmic.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=4772 If there are any others not mentioned, please feel free to add to this list. Richard

All I suspect that Firemedals has just about got it right. I had a search myself for organisations using the initials FPA but found nothing (although there's an outside chance it may be PFA, too, I suppose). Indeed, I have a medal/jewel from the JOUAM that I hand around a Lodge when I give a lecture on Masonic jewels, just to show how the emblems have been used by other fraternal organisations. Kind regards to you all,