Masonic Jewelry

My travels this week took me to Tampa Florida and the surrounding area. I wish that I would have had a chance to visit with some of my brothers in the Tampa area but unfortunately did not have the time. Shown above is a picture of Lodge # 25 in Tampa Florida.The building was completed in 1928, and was designed by a group of architects who were themselves members of the Freemasonic Fraternity. They donated their design to the Lodge. It is reported that they used architectural elements from three different Italian cathedral buildings in designing this edifice.Hillsborough Lodge currently has the largest membership of any Lodge in the State of Florida, with over 1200 subscribing members.  This building is the fourth to house Hillsborough Lodge No. 25, F&AM, since it was founded in 1850. Members of Lodge # 24 wear Masonic Rings similar to those found at Fox Jewelry.

While traveling on business the other day, I happened by one of the most magnificent Masonic structures that I have ever seen. 

The largest Masonic temple in the world, Detroit‘s Masonic temple located downtown at 500 Temple street is a monumental structure with a rich and colorful history, befitting one of the most historic organizations in the world. Encompassing more than 1,000 rooms and more than a million square feet, the temple has served Masons since 1926 and provides a venue for many leading entertainers and theater productions. Its lodges, chapels, and ballrooms are masterpieces of architecture rich with the symbolism of Freemasonry, evident even in the smallest details. The Masonic Rings worn by some of my brothers were purchased from Fox Jewelry located in Sioux City, IA.

I would like to begin a photo album of the Masonic Structures from around the world. I travel extensively and truly amazed by some of the Masonic Structures that I have seen and visited around the world. I will start adding to this page and encourage all of you to share pictures of your various Masonic Lodges, Scottish Rite and York Rite facilities as well as the Shrime Temples around the world. A brief description of  your pictures would be welcome. To the best of my knowledge such a collection of Masonic structures from around the world does not exist. We truly have some unique and beautiful architecture to share with the rest of our brothers and sisters. Pictured above is the Scottish Rite Temple located in Washington D.C.  To go on a virtual tour of the Scottish Rite Temple in Washington, D.C. click on this link: http://www.scottishrite.org/visitors/main.html#ent

As a Mason, I travel quite a bit and am continually impressed with some of the magnificent achitecture that I see in some of the Masonic Lodges, Shrine Temples, and Scottish Rite buildings that I see not only here in U.S. but around the world.  Masonry is not limited to just the U.S. There are many lodges located thruout the world.  I am thinking about adding a page to this blog that would allow our brothers and sisters from all Fraternal organizations around the world to add pictures of their organizations.  The picture shown above is actually of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania located in Philadelphia, PA. At this point in time, I would like to see only pictures that exhibit the magnificent architecture of some of these buildings.  It would be nice to be able to share some of these pictures with the rest of our brothers and sisters around the world. It would also be nice to see some examples of antique Masonic rings, Scottish Rite Rings, York Rite Rings, Knights of Columbus Rings etc., but I will add that feature after I see what kind of response that I get in looking for examples of Fraternal architecture.