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33° certificate for John A. Foster
1862-01-08
Scottish Rite (Masonic order). Supreme Grand Council for the United States of America (Raymond)
USA: Massachusetts, Boston
Parchment
17 3/4" x 13 3/4"; 46 x 34 cm.; 1 item (1 page)
Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library
A2016/053

Signed and Sealed: Masonic Certificates, corridor, part two, August 2017 Thirty-Third Degree Diploma, 1862 Issued to John A. Foster (d. 1890) Engraved by William Rollinson (1762-1842) or Charles Rollinson (ca. 1789-ca. 1833), New York, New York A2016/053 This diploma is a hybrid—the top part is engraved, the bottom portion was handwritten by Lucius Robinson Paige (1802-1896), Grand Secretary General of the Supreme Council. When this document was signed, the Scottish Rite in the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction was experiencing a crisis—two groups claimed to be the organization’s governing body. As a result of this schism, Foster’s status as a 33° Mason was not recognized by one of the groups. About diplomas and other papers like this one, that group claimed that “documents &c, were not issued by authority of this Supreme Council, nor do they bear its proper seal, and are spurious and void.”