Freemasonry, in its Lodges and Ceremonies, makes use of a great deal of symbolism. This publication examines various documents and explains the reasons for the use of particular symbols into Masonry. The author is acknowledged as an expert in this area of the Craft and the information contained in his book will enhance the knowledge of this fascinating subject. First published in 1976 this is the 2003 reprint.

For those who are captivated by the Freemasons, Freemason Symbols & Ceremonies For Dummies takes you into the world of this secret Fraternal organization, explaining all things mysterioud from its elaborate rituals and cryptic rites, to its curious symbols and their meanings. Brought to you by the author of Freemasons For Dummies, readers will get the inside scoop on what goes on in a Masonic meeting, what's behind that secret hand shake, and why Masons wear aprons. You'll understand the true purposes of Masonic "secrecy" and philosophy and discover related organizations like the Knights Templar, the Scottish Rite, and other York Rite Bodies. Explore the controversies and conspiracy theories that swirl around this organization and discover the cool Masonic sites at the center of Dan Brown's bestselling novel The Lost Symbol.

Book includes many full page color illustrations and explanations of the important Masonic symbols. Some of the symbols identified include Builder's tools, three columns, rose, double headed eagle and more.

DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The Symbolism of Freemasonry" (Illustrating and Explaining Its Science and Philosophy, Its Legends, Myths and Symbols) by Albert Gallatin Mackey. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

Of the various modes of communicating instruction to the uninformed, the masonic student is particularly interested in two; namely, the instruction by legends and that by symbols. It is to these two, almost exclusively, that he is indebted for all that he knows, and for all that he can know, of the philosophic system which is taught in the institution. All its mysteries and its dogmas, which constitute its philosophy, are intrusted for communication to the neophyte, sometimes to one, sometimes to the other of these two methods of instruction, and sometimes to both of them combined. The Freemason has no way of reaching any of the esoteric teachings of the Order except through the medium of a legend or a symbol. Contents: Preface. I. Preliminary. II. The Noachidæ. III. The Primitive Freemasonry of Antiquity. IV. The Spurious Freemasonry of Antiquity. V. The Ancient Mysteries. VI. The Dionysiac Artificers. VII. The Union of Speculative and Operative Masonry at the Temple of Solomon. VIII. The Travelling Freemasons of the Middle Ages. IX. Disseverance of the Operative Element. X. The System of Symbolic Instuction. XI. The Speculative Science and the Operative Art. XII. He Symbolism of Solomon'S Temple. XIII. The Form of the Lodge. XIV. The Officers of a Lodge. XV. The Point Within a Circle. XVI. The Covering of the Lodge. XVII. Ritualistic Symbolism. XVIII. The Rite of Discalceation. XIX. The Rite of Investiture. XX. The Symbolism of the Gloves. XXI. The Rite of Circumambulation. XXII. The Rite of Intrusting, and the Symbolism of Light. XXIII. Symbolism of the Corner-Stone. XXIV. The Ineffable Name. XXV. The Legends of Freemasonry. XXVI. The Legend of the Winding Stairs. XXVII. The Legend of the Third Degree. XXVIII. The Sprig of Acacia. XXIX. The Symbolism of Labor. XXX. The Stone of Foundation.216 XXXI.