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Story
September 12, 1925
Richmond Planet
Richmond, Virginia
What is this article about?
An article explores the lost secrets of ancient African masonry, including durable cement, tools for carving granite, methods for moving massive stones, precise building orientations, hidden chambers, and colors lasting 5,000 years, mocking modern Freemasons' claims to these arts.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
THE WONDERS OF AFRICAN PEOPLES
SOME SECRETS OF AFRICAN MASONRY
Modern speculative masonry has what it calls secrets, but none of them are what were called secrets among the ancient Africans who practiced the mystic craft ages before England founded her York Rite and France her Grand Orient. The Africans had secrets both operative and speculative which today are either lost or still kept secret. What sort of cement was it they used that became harder than the stones it held together? What kind of tools did they use by which they carved tombs and temples out of the hardest granite as though it was mere chalk?
How did they raise stones weighing fifty to one hundred tons, or place capitals on the tops of pillars that weighed as much as the pillars themselves? What did the orientation of their buildings mean to them and how to set them so perfect that there is not the error of an inch? How did they make stone doors that moved to a touch as light as a feather and hide secret chambers so that none could find them except those who made them?
What were their secrets of making colors that retained their brightness after five thousand years?
These are but a few of the secrets which were known to ancient African masons and if they could know that modern pale-skinned men claim to have them they would turn over in their graves and laugh. Ancient masonry sleeps. Its monuments alone speak and their speech is the speech of silence.
SOME SECRETS OF AFRICAN MASONRY
Modern speculative masonry has what it calls secrets, but none of them are what were called secrets among the ancient Africans who practiced the mystic craft ages before England founded her York Rite and France her Grand Orient. The Africans had secrets both operative and speculative which today are either lost or still kept secret. What sort of cement was it they used that became harder than the stones it held together? What kind of tools did they use by which they carved tombs and temples out of the hardest granite as though it was mere chalk?
How did they raise stones weighing fifty to one hundred tons, or place capitals on the tops of pillars that weighed as much as the pillars themselves? What did the orientation of their buildings mean to them and how to set them so perfect that there is not the error of an inch? How did they make stone doors that moved to a touch as light as a feather and hide secret chambers so that none could find them except those who made them?
What were their secrets of making colors that retained their brightness after five thousand years?
These are but a few of the secrets which were known to ancient African masons and if they could know that modern pale-skinned men claim to have them they would turn over in their graves and laugh. Ancient masonry sleeps. Its monuments alone speak and their speech is the speech of silence.
What sub-type of article is it?
Curiosity
Historical Event
Extraordinary Event
What themes does it cover?
Triumph
Deception
What keywords are associated?
African Masonry
Lost Secrets
Ancient Techniques
Freemasonry
Granite Carving
Heavy Stones
Enduring Colors
What entities or persons were involved?
Ancient African Masons
Modern Pale Skinned Men
Where did it happen?
Africa
Story Details
Key Persons
Ancient African Masons
Modern Pale Skinned Men
Location
Africa
Event Date
Ancient Times, Five Thousand Years Ago
Story Details
The text poses rhetorical questions about ancient African masons' techniques for creating durable structures and artifacts, contrasts them with modern Freemasonry, and suggests the ancients would mock modern claims to these secrets.