Very Old Masonic Books

Now there is a chance there are many who will have never heard of these books but I believe that they are are so rare and valuable I will not disclose more than I need to.

They have already been appraised so I know they are authentic. To even order books in PDF is 10,000 pounds. They are hand made, only 1000 of each book were ever made. With in the first couple of pages there is am eagle with a triangle above it's head with the number 32.

The first book is titled Complete Works of Charles Lamb - Poems and Plays & Misc. Essays Vol. II

The second books is titled Complete Works of Charles Lamb - Adventures of Ulyses Guy Faux.

Freemasons, what was the purpose of these books? Why were so few created? Did I come across something incredibly priceless?

I was told not even open the books and to take out insurance on them. My curiosity has gotten the better of me and have in fact began reading a bit here and there, though the style of writing and the obvious cryptic nature of the books cause me some difficulty determining the purpose of the books. If anyone can shed some light on this matter, I'd be most grateful!

[edit on 13-9-2009 by oconnection]

Originally posted by oconnection
To even order books in PDF is 10,000 pounds.

I don't believe you and I think you're lying...

Charles Lamb on Amazon

Why?

[edit on 13-9-2009 by Roark]

reply to post by oconnection


Allow me to save you 10,000 pounds...
www.gutenberg.org...

I'm sure original tombs are quite valuable, as they'd be more than 200 years old, so any such original printing would be. But reprints are readily available at Amazon, and as demonstrated, a fair amount of his work is on Project Gutenberg for free.

I'm not aware of any Masonic connection or significance, other than that Mackey quoted Lamb for one sentence in his Encyclopedia of Freemasonry.

reply to post by JoshNorton


I was told by two separate appraisers that they believe both books originals, so I'm not worried about that. What I find curious is the apparent 32 degree symbol within the first few pages. Were these books given out at the 32nd or 33rd degree? Also these books were obtained from a private collection in the UK. In fact I spent 5 hours being questioned by Customs. I showed them the bill of sale and eventually went on my way.

To the individual whom doesn't believe me, I could care less. I'm more interested in why there is an apparent Masonic symbols in the book. Perhaps I need to inquire a Masonic historian to grasp the full nature of this book.

I'm not interested in selling them, I view them as priceless. All though I was offered 100,000 for each, I care not about the money. I just want to gain further insight on these books.

Seems that I will have to further my search elsewhere. Thank you for your time gentlemen.

[edit on 13-9-2009 by oconnection]

reply to post by oconnection


Is there any indication where they were printed? (UK vs US?) If they were, in fact, first editions, they couldn't have had any 32° symbolism, because they 32° degree didn't exist in any meaningful form for another 20+ years after their publication. And even then, really only in the US. Possible some American Masonic printer was a fan of Lamb and printed his own edition, which would add to its rarity. Even likely that such an edition may have made it back across the pond to England.

*shrug*

reply to post by JoshNorton


I have them locked away at the moment, I will take a few pictures in coming days and post them. I need to get insurance on these books, that will be my first line of business. Once that is taken care of I will provide photos.

[edit on 13-9-2009 by oconnection]

Ebay frequently has 100+ year old original prints of masonic books that usually run a couple hundred bucks like these shop.ebay.com... Sorry about the name drop. I bet some parts are fascinating to read and can be quite confusing, especially written in proper English(if there is such a thing, lol) but just keep in mind when reading some of these you almost have to put yourself in a similar ideological mindset in order to understand what context is being used but if your books are in good shape and original prints than they certainly could be very valuable, especially to the right person. If anything else, you may have yourself a good story line to National Treasure 5 or 6, lol.

Originally posted by oconnection

Freemasons, what was the purpose of these books?

Why are you asking Masons. Those are not "Masonic books", and the author does not appear to have been a Freemason.

I created a thread about symbols, their believed origins and why some of them are mistakenly condisdered to be purely Masonic.

The Bicephalous, or double-headed eagle, has many heraldric uses to this day and actually appears on the flags of several nations. It is not solely a Masonic emblem and can be found in numerous non-Masonic applications.

reply to post by oconnection

You and my husband have a lot in common. My husband was there on business with his partner and went through the same exact thing. I'm curious to speak to you. I know you posted this 2 years ago so I hope you get this. Are some of your pages sealed together too? I wonder if they were made like that on purpose because there are secretes in between them. Please contact me.

reply to post by oconnection

The only place that will insure them is probably Loyd's of London....