Thursday, October 30, 2003

Masonic Rifle (2003)

Having become a Mason, I volunteered to make a Masonic rifle to be raffled off by Rising Son #85, my lodge. They provided money for the parts. I discovered that there were a number of early gunsmiths who were Masons, like George Shreyer, making rifles for fellow Masons. I patterned this rifle after the work of Adam Ernest who worked in York, PA circa 1790-1830. The symbolic decoration is all my own, from my Masonic studies. This is one of the most elaborate rifles I have ever made.