Possible Masonic symbol? Something else entirely?

April 23, 2011 7:59 AM

What is this weird symbol carved in stone?

My parents bought a new house, and while we were cleaning out what we think might be a pumphouse out back, we found this (click for picture -- sorry for the crappy cell phone shot).

Each side is probably a foot long, and it's very heavy (marble, maybe?). My dad thinks its a masonic symbol of the York Rite, but he's not sure.

posted by AmandaA to Society & Culture (14 answers total)

A six-pointed star is the Star of David. Whether or not that's actually what it's intended to be (as opposed to simply a 6-pointed star) I can't tell. Is possible it's a Masonic Hexagram.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 8:09 AM on April 23, 2011

Not a Masonic symbol, so it's not York Rite.
Possibly, a Martinist symbol?
posted by Thorzdad at 8:10 AM on April 23, 2011

Probably just a decorative Star of David motif. Check out google images, there's one similar on the second page, I think.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 8:14 AM on April 23, 2011

There are a couple symbols just like yours outside the Rockefeller Museum.
posted by donnagirl at 8:34 AM on April 23, 2011

Looks like the Star of David, as others have said.
posted by dfriedman at 9:16 AM on April 23, 2011

Could be a damaged, unused gravestone. A lot of times errors ended up being used as paving stones or whatever.
posted by Slinga at 9:19 AM on April 23, 2011

It's a Star of David with a Tudor rose in the middle.
posted by elsietheeel at 9:21 AM on April 23, 2011

I don't think it's a Tudor rose, but just a rosette.
posted by oinopaponton at 9:29 AM on April 23, 2011

Looks like granite to me.
posted by leafwoman at 9:35 AM on April 23, 2011

The first thing that popped into my head (and this is just a gut intuition, not anything educated) is Rosicrucianism. Some cursory Googling suggests that the Rosicrucians do use the six-pointed star in some of their symbolism, as well as the five-petaled rosette. I couldn't find any instances of the two symbols together, though.
posted by ixohoxi at 9:57 AM on April 23, 2011

can you give a bit more information as to where this house is?
posted by adamvasco at 11:52 AM on April 23, 2011

And it could definitely be from Freemasonry
posted by adamvasco at 12:46 PM on April 23, 2011

Star of david plus flower
posted by Carbolic at 10:01 PM on April 23, 2011

dropped my link ">http://l.thumbs.canstockphoto.com/canstock1058933.jpg
posted by Carbolic at 10:03 PM on April 23, 2011