Scottish Rite Masonic Museum & Library

Masonic Scottish Rite Sculpture of Active Member
1983
Robert Burdette
USA: Illinois, Pekin
Wood, paint
overall: 13"h x 4-1/2"w x 3-1/4"d
Gift of the Supreme Council, 33º, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction, U.S.A.
2009.066.43

Wooden sculpture of a man wearing a purple Masonic Scottish Rite cap (active). He has brown trousers and vest with red coat, white shirt and dark tie and shoes. The sculpture stands on a square base. His arms are folded behind his back. Pressed into the base is the artist's signature "RDB 83." Applied to the bottom of the base is a label reading "Robert Burdette / 108 Craig Rd. / Pekin, IL 61554."

Robert Burdette’s hand-carved sculpture depicts a Scottish Rite Mason wearing a purple cap to signify his status as an Active Member. The Active Members, along with the Sovereign Grand Commander, make up the Supreme Council, the governing body of the Scottish Rite’s Northern Masonic Jurisdiction. This sculpture was probably a gift from Burdette to former Sovereign Grand Commander Stanley F. Maxwell (1910–1997).