Members of a Masonic Lodge

This photograph shows a group of European and Indian members of a Freemasons lodge in India. Developed in Britain in the 1600s the Freemasons are a fraternal order that adopted the rites and trappings of ancient religious orders and chivalric brotherhoods. Although dominated by white Protestant men, British Masonic lodges allowed membership to Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and other "others." Many indigenous elites were attracted to Masonry because of its ideology of cosmopolitan brotherhood— a member of a Masonic lodge could privately worship his god of choice while still belonging to a community of believers. Masonry spread globally, offering its members access to convivial society, moral and spiritual refinement, social advancement, and material assistance. The individuals in this photograph hold or wear accessories—among them compasses, straightedges, measuring sticks, dividers, chisels, and aprons—relating to the tools of medieval stonecutters and builders from which the order derives its name.