Hiram Abiff

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hiram Abiff is an allegorical figure mentioned in Masonic ritual, who is figuratively the master of the construction of King Solomon's Temple.

Contents 1 Hirams in the Bible 2 Hiram in Freemasonry 3 Alternative theories 4 Notes 5 References

[edit] Hirams in the Bible

The name "Hiram Abiff" does not appear as such in the Bible, but there are three references to people named Hiram that are present:

• Hiram, King of Tyre, is credited in 2 Samuel 5:11 and 1 Kings 5:1-10 for having sent building materials and men for the original construction of the Temple in Jerusalem.

• Hiram, a craftsman of great skill sent from Tyre. 2 Chronicles 2:13 relates a formal request from King Solomon of Jerusalem to King Hiram I of Tyre, for workers and for materials to build a new temple; King Hiram responds "I am sending you Huram, a man of great skill, whose mother was from Dan and whose father was from Tyre. He is trained to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood and with purple, blue and crimson yarn and fine linen. He is experienced in all kinds of engraving and can execute any design given to him. He will work with your craftsmen and with those of my lord, David your father."

• In 1 Kings 7:13–14, Hiram (NKJV spells as Huram) is described as the son of a widow from the tribe of Naphtali who was the son of a Tyrian bronze worker, contracted by Solomon to cast the bronze furnishings and ornate decorations for the new temple. From this reference, Freemasons often refer to Hiram (with the added Abiff) as "the widow's son". Hiram lived or at least temporarily worked in clay banks (1 Kings 7:46-47) in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zaretan.

[edit] Hiram in Freemasonry

Hiram Abiff figures prominently in the allegorical tales of Freemasonry, as the chief architect of King Solomon's Temple. It is clear from ritual that Hiram Abiff is the craftsman and not the king, but this may be an allegorical tool. An example of current ritual is the 1991 English Emulation Ritual.^[1] Albert Mackey states that Hiram is also a name given to the gavel of the Worshipful Master.^[2]

[edit] Alternative theories

Masons and Revisionist historians, Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas, argue (very speculatively) in their book The Hiram Key that Hiram Abiff was the Theban pharaoh Tao II the Brave.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Bradford University, example of the Third degree illustrating the Hiram Myth
• deHoyos, Arturo and Morris, Brent S. - Freemasonry in Context: History, Ritual, Controversy - Lexington Books; Lanham, MD; 2004
• Emulation Ritual - Lewis Masonic; London, 1991 - ISBN 0-85318-187-X
• Mackey, Albert Gallatin - A Lexicon of Freemasonry - Charleston (South Carolina), 1845.
• Strong, James - Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, 1990, Thomas Nelson Publishers - ISBN 0-8407-6750-1