Episode 8: The Masonic Temple of Philadelphia
Hosted by Nonna Batrakova
Release date: February 3, 2022
The Masonic Temple of Philadelphia was constructed in 1873 and today stands at the center of town, directly across the street from City Hall. Producer Nonna Batrakova examines the remarkable diversity of architectural styles that served as inspiration for the design of the Grand Lodge. Within the building, we focus on the interior decoration of four grand halls, each respectively named after the civilization or style evoked in the room’s furniture and wall ornamentation, such as Egyptian or Corinthian Hall. A number of interviews explore the monument’s history and reveal the significance of this lodge to its current Freemason members.
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About this episode of Monument Biography
About the host:
Nonna Batrakova is an undergraduate student in the Art History and Anthropology program at Temple University.
About the guests:
William D. Moore is the director of American and New England Studies program, and Associate Professor of American Material Culture at Boston University.
Michael J. Ernst is a Ph.D. student studying Islamic Art History at Temple University. He is also an alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania and a Freemason. Presently, Ernst is an elected officer at University Lodge No. 51, which was founded in 1791 and has historical ties to the University of Pennsylvania.
Want to Learn More about the topics covered in this episode?
Pierre-Yves Beaurepaire,"Masonic Connections and Rivalries between France and Britain." In British Sociability in the Long Eighteenth Century: Challenging the Anglo-French Connection, edited by Capdeville Valérie and Kerhervé Alain, 109-26. Woodbridge: Boydell & Brewer, 2019.
William D. Moore, Masonic Temples: Freemasonry, Ritual Architecture, and Masculine Archetypes. Knoxville, Tennessee: The University of Tennessee Press, 2006.
John C. Poppeliers, "The 1867 Philadelphia Masonic Temple Competition," Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 26, no. 4 (1967), 279-84.
Chernoh M. Sesay, "Respectability and Representation: Black Freemasonry, Race, and Early Free Black Leadership." In Black Knowledges/Black Struggles: Essays in Critical Epistemology, edited by Ambroise Jason R.and Broeck Sabine, 44-67. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2015.
The Masonic Temple in Philadelphia website of the Masonic Library and Museum of Pennsylvania.
Music Credits for this episode of Monument Biography:
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Overture Act I from The Magic Flute by RIAS Symphonie-Orchester Berlin