Did you know, you can have a tour of Freemasons Hall in London even if you aren’t a Freemason. The tours and museum are free, open to the public and well worth a visit next time you’re in London.
Wbro Keith our secretary enjoys nothing better than being at sea (well the River Tyne mostly!). He runs Highlights PR, with it’s head office an 8 metre long Viking Cruiser moored on the Tyne, so it’s no surprise that in January, he and another of our members, Bro Tom Stewart, paid their annual visit to the Boat Show in London.
Having time to spare, they decided to visit Grand Lodge and take part in the hourly tour.
Wbro Keith reports:
“I’m not going into any detail about the tour but I was amazed at how many Lodge Temperance connections there were.
Walking down a corridor (as seen in BBC TV Spooks) the stained glass windows depicted familiar masonic virtues including Temperance. The art work in the glass was so detailed as you can see from the photo I took.
Next was the roll of honour for Masons who made the ultimate sacrifice during World War One.
George Hope, Walter Winkworth and John Roberts are all immortalised forever under the Lodge Temperance No 2557 entry. A very moving experience to see those names of brothers who have a living connection with us all.
Finally, the splendour and enormity of the Grand Temple was breath taking. The mosaics in the ceiling design (none more than an inch across) really were impressive. The Temperance figure in the ceiling looked down on us all with reverence and humility.
A great visit that I would recommend to everyone when next in London.”
As a footnote, the first boat we saw at the boat show was called Knights Templar II – coincidence or what?”
Stained Glass Window
WW 1 Masonic Roll of Honour
Ceiling Mosaic
A Masonic Boat?
