Mark History

I doubt if anyone disputes the conclusion that operative stonemasons ‘marked’ stones prepared by them. Similarly, I think it safe to say that two general types of marks existed – one to identify the position and orientation of the ashlar in the final assembly, and another attesting to the workman who rendered the stone. Unlike all other medieval trades, the stonemason was a free man. He was not bound to any Lord or Bishop; his employment was effectively piecework. Each man had his own mark which he carved into every stone he worked, in order to secure payment. Many distinctive marks can be found in the fabric of cathedrals and castles throughout the medieval western world. Although Freemasonry has always been associated with stonemasons, Craft Masonic ceremonies make very few references to the working of stone. The Mark Degree, is explicitly related to stone working and building in stone. It takes its name from the medieval mason's "mark". By the 14th century, building had reached a scale that required the trade to be regulated in its customs and practices. The first regulatory body was the Masons’ Company, formed in London sometime before 1375,later known as the London Masons’ Company. It was granted a coat of arms in 1472. These arms were later adopted by the first Grand Lodge soon after its foundation in 1717, and still form one half of the arms of the present United Grand Lodge of England. The earliest records of a speculative Mark degree being worked in England are those of Royal Arch Chapter No 257 at Portsmouth on 1 September 1769 when several brethren were made Mark Masons and Mark Masters. It is apparent from this working that the Mark Man degree was conferred on Fellow Crafts and the Mark Master Degree on Master Masons. The Mark degree ritual is a strong link between "operative"(i.e. real working stone-masons) and "symbolic" masonry. Scottish operative lodge minute books and other surviving documents bear many "marks", which would therefore have been familiar to the earliest symbolic masons. Records also show that a form of the Mark Degree was worked as early as 1599. The Mark ritual uses the symbolism of the keystone of a stone arch to teach a lesson in morality. The Jewel of the Mark Degree (above left) is shaped as a keystone.