New Exhibition in the Grand Lodge of New York The Chancellor Robert R Livingston Masonic Library of Grand Lodge announces the opening of an exhibition of seven water-coloured engravings dating from the early 19th century, used as illustrations in Masonic exposures published in France and other parts of Europe. These engravings were acquired by the Library in late 2011, and will be on display in our Manhattan site in Masonic Hall, 71 West 23rd Street, beginning in January 2012. Since its beginnings, Freemasonry has been unfairly labelled by its detractors as a ‘secret society.’ While some of that accusation focuses on the use of modes of recognition, most of the opponents of Freemasonry also raise questions about what might be happening behind the closed lodge doors during degree ceremonies. For the past three hundred years, foes of the Craft have speculated far and wide about the nature of the ritual that has meant so much and continues to mean so much to Masons around the world. We, as Freemasons living in a free society, know that the privacy we maintain around our work exists for a number of very important but relatively harmless reasons. First, we use the degrees to set a state of mind in the candidate that is conducive to the learning of lessons not just on a level of logic, but at a level of emotion. By clouding the degrees in mystery, the candidate approaches the ceremony with a pre-existing state of wonder, which intensifies the overall experience, and hopefully establishes the lessons firmly on his conscience. Second, our reason for maintaining privacy relates to tradition, and frankly, Freemasonry values tradition sometimes for the sake of tradition. In the case of the ritual, the tradition had long been that the ritual was taught mouth to ear, and not written down, not even (as in times past) in cipher or code. This practice existed to a large extent to maintain the privacy of the ritual. But from early on, probably from the morning after the first Masonic lodge meeting, people have been writing accounts of what they suspected took place during Masonic degree ceremonies. This practice of ‘exposing’ Masonic ritual developed into a genre of Masonic literature called ‘exposures.’ Masonic exposures gained popularity in the mid 18th century, featuring the full text of lectures, recounted by ‚genuine and authentic past members of…‛ some Masonic lodge or side order. The engravings on display at the Livingston Library represent a series of seven illustrations by French artist Louis Travenol under his alias Leonard Gabanon. The original illustrations were created by Gabanon in the 1740s: our engravings date from 1809-1812, and feature illustrations meant to accompany exposed accounts of Masonic degrees and ceremonies. If you watch cable television, you will be familiar with the style of Gabanon’s illustrations, since they are often used in documentaries exploring the history and symbolism of Freemasonry. The illustrations are provocative, in the sense that they cause Masons to reflect on what degrees might have entailed in Europe more than two hundred years ago. They may cause the general public to be curious and interested about the nature of Masonic ceremonies, just as the same images caused curiosity and interest when published throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.
By RW THOMAS M. SAVINI , Director of the GL of New York Library
Cross Keys January. 2012