Swedenborg Rite and the Great Masonic Leaders of the Eighteenth Century

by Samuel Beswick 

First edition.  New York:  Masonic Publishing Company, 1870  

Hardback is overall in VERY GOOD- condition.

• Violet covers have blind tooled frame and title stamped in gilt.
• Boards show some wear, bumps, scuffing, edgewear.  Corners are bumped, scuffed, with exposed board.  See photos.  
• Spine has gilt text and is sunned and scuffed with chipped, frayed ends.  See photos.
• Binding is secure. 
• Dark brown end papers/ pastedowns show little sign of age or wear.
• Interior is gently age-toned, exhibits some smudges, staining in the margins, staining to pgs. 198-199.  See photos.  
• Inside pages are free of writing and intentional marks.
• Text block edges have some staining.  
• PS2026.0325

204 pages. 4.75 x 7.5 inches

First edition.  Publisher's pebbled violet boards with beveled edges, stamped frame, and ornamented gilt title.  Exposure and wear has resulted in color loss; shoulders show damage at spine ends.  Interior has toning commensurate with age; pages 198-199 show staining, with the remainder largely clear.  Very scarce in commerce.

The author, Samuel Parr Beswick (b. 1822), was born in England to a Swedenborgian family.  His book, written when he was living in New Jersey, drew connections between Swedish mysticism and Masonic ritual.  Contemporary reception was mixed, though it has continued to be cited and reprinted into the present day. 

On the cover, Freemasonry appears as Phremasonry.  This appears to have been Beswick's usage, which an anonymous contemporary review took issue with.  Beswick claimed the derivation of the word 'Phremason' (as he spells it) came from two ancient words, “Phre or Pi-re, The Light, and Mason, to search, or feel for blindly ... Our ancient brethren meant by this significant title, that a Phre-mason is a poor blind candidate, or one in darkness, who is feeling his way in search of light."

Please see photos. More photos available upon request.

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