Mark is another side order of Freemasonry that can be joined after becoming a Master Mason With respect to the history of the degree, while there is evidence that a form of Mark Degree was in existence in Scotland as early as 1599, according to the earliest known English records Mark Masonry was introduced in a speculative body at Portsmouth on the 1st September 1769, when Thomas Dunkerley conferred the Mark Degree on brethren of the Royal Arch Chapter of Friendship No 257.
It is well known that operative stonemasons indented the stones they had prepared with special marks. These were of two types, those that indicated the orientation and position of the stone within the building together with a personal mark to identify the mason who prepared it. Additional marks were sometimes employed to indicate the location where the stone had been quarried.
The jewel comes in its presentation box and is a ribbon suspended from a decorative silver bar on the ribbon is a silver Mallet and Chisel, hanging from a “Lewis” is the Keystone the front and back of this it is engraved with certain characters that form an integral part of the ceremony when joining.
