The Iconography of the Lodge Tracing Board of the Thirty-Second Degree of the AASR , Sublime Prince of the Royal Secret
which is associated with them . Instead , these Four Living Creatures enshrine both the Ark and its contents — that is , the very particular space of the center of the tracing board . That is why it is a twofold shrine ; it features a twofold esoteric background that it nevertheless displays . The goal of the initiatory journey of the tracing board can be identified as Jerusalem , but it is also important to deconstruct complex and nested symbolic motifs that correspond to a very rich layering of meanings .
A general understanding of the degree must incorporate the religious context of its development at the end of the eighteenth century , as this provides a key to its construction . Although some items have disappeared from the written rituals , they remain present in the form of iconographic motifs , which are at times very discreet . I have chosen here to focus on these motifs and to propose an interpretation of them . The iconography of the lodge tracing boards underscores and selects the essential moments of the rituals and invites alternative readings of them . 5
I - The Iconographic Sources Used and the Structure Common to the Tracing Boards
A . The Iconographic Sources
My argument is based on a corpus
that is limited to the “ first tracing boards ” ( those from before the mid-nineteenth century , since later tracing boards are repetitions ) found both on paper ( tracing boards or seals ) and on aprons . It would be appropriate to quickly introduce these according to their age . One quickly realizes that the motifs and the structure are very similar from one tracing board to another , though with some specificities that are worth noting . This is why , rather than adding to the iconographic instances of the camp , which are virtually identical or “ fanciful ” at the end of the nineteenth century , I would prefer to make comparisons with other lodge tracing boards or other types of sources that seem enlightening .
1 ) The oldest representations are in black and white . They appear in the following manuscripts :
a ) Ms Baylot BNF FM4 . 15 , ( also called Ms St Domingue ), dated to 1764 ( fig . 1 ).
This manuscript is characterized by the imprecision of certain black-andwhite representations , by its size ( the camp is 25cm x 25cm , making it a true lodge tracing board ), by the originality of its central motifs , and , perhaps above all , by the systematic presence of rays that transform every geometric figure into an essential motif , that of a glory . b ) Ms Francken ( black and white , circa 1784 , fig . 2 ).
This tracing board is characterized by the presence of doubled letters of the passwords on the internal face of the nonagon . These are linked to the pennons and flags that are above the tents at identical heights . The only readable motif is that of the inscription Laus Deo .
The Francken and Baylot manuscripts both show posts placed on the sides of the pentagon that disappear on the other tracing boards .
5
Referring back to descriptions of the armies of the camp , the passwords , their commentaries , and so forth that have been provided several times in the past is beyond the scope of this article .
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