Charles River Editors - The Freemasons: The History of Freemasonry and the Worlds Most Famous Secret Society

The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of man, with the beauty of man, to dwell in a house. Isaiah 44:13

The unique and multifaceted craft of stonemasonry has been around since the early years of civilization, particularly the Neolithic Revolution of 10,000 BCE, when people learned to tame both animal and land. Following the revolutionary discovery of fire, these early humans began to create a collection of primitive building tools. Innovations in early construction came in time. Heating limestone in mortars with a mixture of water produced a white, corrosive element known as quicklime. A healthy blend of sand, cement, and crushed limestone created plaster, which was used to spread on walls, ceilings, and other surfaces for a smooth and sturdy finish.

Stonemasonry has gifted the world with all of its man-made wonders. Stonemasons, otherwise known as stone-cutters, helped design burial mounds, the traditional towering pyramids of Egypt, and the stupendous step pyramids used in Incan, Mayan, and other Mesoamerican communities. The thriving community of stone-cutters later played a hand in the construction of the first temples, cathedrals, and castles around the world, as well as the renowned landmarks of Cuzco's Ican Wall, Stonehenge, and the Easter Island Statues, among many others.

These stone-cutters were also pioneers in the field of calligraphy. They were the first to etch messages into stone, which served as the earliest medium of human communication. Egyptian stonemasons are said to have devised the language of hieroglyphics, a system of symbols scribbled across walls and stone tablets to convey messages to one other, as well as future descendants. As society further developed around the world, humans adopted the method of scribing on stone, immortalizing scripture and different works of literature.

Stonemasons belonged to guilds, which were essentially associations of like-minded craftsmen and merchants who practiced the same trade. The first guilds housed members of a singular town, but by the time of the Middle Ages, when the demand for quality stonemasons soared, the guilds expanded. More wealthy nobles and leaders from near and faraway lands began to summon these masons for assistance in a variety of construction projects. As a result, many described the stonemasons as outcasts of society, as they lived unstable, nomadic lifestyles, flitting from one place to another as they trailed after the scent of employment.

The stonemasons were split into 3 classes the apprentices, the journeymen, and the master masons. Apprentices were novice and aspiring craftsmen, who served as indentured students and laborers to their masters in exchange for specialized one-on-one training. Journeymen were those who had already completed the required training, and as their name suggests, tagged along after their masters to assist on construction projects in distant cities. Master masons were the most prestigious class of the stonemasons, a title awarded to only the most learned and skilled of all the craftsmen in the guild. The masters had the final say, and held full authority over construction sites, as well as all the carpenters, builders, and craftsmen below him.

Stonemasons developed a variety of tools that helped them perfect the craft. The first stonemasons utilized other abrasive stones as carving tools. Later, the discovery of more metals gave way to the inventions of chisels, mallets, hammers, drills, and saws fashioned out of iron. One of the most commonly used stonemason tools was the punch hammer, which was a special hammer with a narrow, multipurpose head, making it easier to shape stone. Another cherished tool was the masonic square and compass, which was a drawing compass and a square angle merged together. After each project, a guild left a calling card of sorts, a distinctive symbol carved into the structure, as artists would their masterpieces.