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Design for Masonic Lodge of Instruction Past Master Jewel
1900-1950
Frederick T. Widmer (1877-1895); Kenneth Robert Park (1908-2008)
USA: Massachusetts, Boston (probably)
Watercolor on paper
Overall: 4"h x 6"w
Loaned by the Grand Lodge of Masons in Massachusetts
GL2004.10961.1

Design for Masonic Lodge of Instruction Past Master jewel. Rectangular, gold-tone jewel with blue ribbon. Bar at top reads "Past Master." Suspended from the ribbon is a rectangle with an open book in the center and "Lodge / of / Instruction" on the pages. The reverse of the jewel has lettering "Presented / by / the Grand Lodge / of / Massachusetts / to / Wor. John Smith / as a token / of / appreciation / for services / as presiding Master / of the 1st Lodge / of Instruction / 1937-1939."


Jewel design, ca. 1939, probably Boston, Massachusetts. Jewelers who specialized in fraternal jewelry often keep photographs or images of the different jewels, badges and awards they manufactured as a catalogue of their offerings. When a lodge or organization requested a new design, the jeweler frequently drew or painted a sketch of the proposed design to facilitate discussion. The watercolors displayed here are badge and jewel designs from the Boston shop of jeweler Frederick Widmer and his successor, Kenneth Park. This design for a jewel to recognize Past Masters of Lodges of Instruction with its plain, flat, blue ribbon and clean, rectangular top bar, is similar to military medals from the early 1900s. The Grand Lodge of Massachusetts established Lodges of Instruction in 1927 to give candidates a chance to learn about Freemasonry outside the ritual. Reflecting the lodges’ newness, jewelers turned to contemporary designs rather than Masonic traditions in proposing a look for this jewel. For further information, see Newell, Aimee, et.al., "Curiosities of the Craft: Treasures from the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts Collection", 2013, p. 274-275.