MasonomroM
Registered User
"In the depiction of the culminating rites shown in [this figure], the king, accompanied by a guardian with arms raised in the traditional attitude of prayer and worship, comes into the most sacred space of the palace where he would have received royal insignia from the hand of a representation of Ishtar, in the presence of other gods and divinized ancestors. The king’s hand is extended to receive these insignia while his arm is raised in a gesture of oath making. As also seen in biblical practice, the solemn nature of the oath was confirmed by touching the throat. Note that the Mesopotamian royal insignia of the rod and the coil as they were depicted here in 1800 bce, had a basic function of measurement similar to the square and compass in later times."
(See Bradshaw, J., [2015], Freemasonry and the Origins of Modern Temple Ordinances, The Interpreter, 15, 59-237).
I realize that it isn't popular in most modern-era masonic circles to suggest that masonry has some ancient antecedents, but wouldn't this be an example of one?
I personally don't think freemasonry is 100% ancient, but it seems to me that some of the symbols (square and compasses, for example) and other actions (penal oaths) are ancient.
Thoughts?
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