hanzosbm
Premium Member
I doubt that there is a Mason out there (at least one with the slightest interest in really understanding our teachings) who has not done at least some research on the history of the Craft. I know I have done a significant amount. That being said, like myself, I'm sure most Masons have no formal training in history aside from a few general education classes taken in school.
To cut to the root of things, what methods are used for dating documents found online? We all know that online sources are not the best to use, but for unusual documents such as those we typically seek, for most of us, that is all that is available. Yet, one can easily find the same document with significantly different dates assigned. In our case, this is problematic because we tend to be looking for comparative dates to tell a story of how things have evolved.
Case in point: The Inigo Jones Manuscript is seen by some to be of huge importance for its introduction of the protagonist central to the 3rd degree. Many would argue that its date of 1607 ( http://theoldcharges.com/chapter-17.html )far predates any other mention of this character and therefore is very important. But even that link indicates that there is doubt about the dating. There are others who date it at 1655 ( http://www.themasonictrowel.com/Articles/Manuscripts/manuscripts_main_toc.htm ) which at first seems to be impossible since Inigo Jones died in 1652, but is the date wrong, or the author? Then you have other sites dating it to 1725 ( http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/masonic_manuscripts_jones.html ) which not only puts it FAR later than the lifetime of Inigo Jones, but also means that it is no longer the first version of the character known from the 3rd degree.
There are many other similar cases. For instance, in The Three Distinct Knocks has dates of 1723, 1760, and 1763, and the document references Masonry Dissected which it dates at 1700 but others date to 1730, which obviously has problems.
So, back to the original question, for those with training in these kinds of things, how do reconcile these things and come to a solid conclusion?
To cut to the root of things, what methods are used for dating documents found online? We all know that online sources are not the best to use, but for unusual documents such as those we typically seek, for most of us, that is all that is available. Yet, one can easily find the same document with significantly different dates assigned. In our case, this is problematic because we tend to be looking for comparative dates to tell a story of how things have evolved.
Case in point: The Inigo Jones Manuscript is seen by some to be of huge importance for its introduction of the protagonist central to the 3rd degree. Many would argue that its date of 1607 ( http://theoldcharges.com/chapter-17.html )far predates any other mention of this character and therefore is very important. But even that link indicates that there is doubt about the dating. There are others who date it at 1655 ( http://www.themasonictrowel.com/Articles/Manuscripts/manuscripts_main_toc.htm ) which at first seems to be impossible since Inigo Jones died in 1652, but is the date wrong, or the author? Then you have other sites dating it to 1725 ( http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/masonic_manuscripts_jones.html ) which not only puts it FAR later than the lifetime of Inigo Jones, but also means that it is no longer the first version of the character known from the 3rd degree.
There are many other similar cases. For instance, in The Three Distinct Knocks has dates of 1723, 1760, and 1763, and the document references Masonry Dissected which it dates at 1700 but others date to 1730, which obviously has problems.
So, back to the original question, for those with training in these kinds of things, how do reconcile these things and come to a solid conclusion?