SCOTT, Charles "The Keystone of the Masonic Arch" [Thomas Palmer, 1856]

SCOTT, Charles. The Keystone of the Masonic Arch. A Commentary on the Universal Laws and Principles of Ancient Freemasonry.

Jackson, Miss.: Published by Thomas Palmer, 1856. First Edition. 7.5" x 5", 354pp. Publisher’s original reddish-brown cloth, elaborate blind-stamped ornamental boards, spine gilt with Masonic emblems including all-seeing eye, open book, and symbolic tools; gilt publisher imprint at foot of spine (“Palmer, Jackson, Miss.”). Yellow coated endpapers. Front free endpaper bearing printed lodge label: “The Property of Lodge of the Ancient Landmarks, No. 441,” with manuscript notation “Added to Library March 1869,” and printed instruction that the book not be removed from the lodge rooms. Spine sunned. Hinges secure and textblock clean. Very Good+.

This work represents one of the earliest sustained American attempts to systematize the philosophical foundations of Ancient Freemasonry in relation to natural law, moral science, and religious tradition. Scott’s synthesis reflects mid-19th-century efforts to align Masonic symbolism with broader intellectual currents in theology, jurisprudence, and social order. Copies with documented lodge library provenance, such as this example, provide direct material evidence of how Masonic doctrine was circulated, studied, and preserved within active lodges during the period.