Robert Lomas

Robert Lomas is a British writer and business studies academic. He writes primarily about the history of Freemasonry as well as the Neolithic period, ancient engineering and archaeoastronomy.

Career

In engineering and business studies

Lomas gained a First Class Honours degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Salford before being awarded a PhD for his research into solid state physics and crystalline structures.^[1] From here he went on to work on electronic weapons systems and emergency services command and control systems.^[2]

He currently lectures on Information Systems at the University of Bradford's School of Management.^[3] According to his website, Lomas is a regular supporter of the Orkney International Science Festival, having lectured there, chaired sessions, and taken part in the school's support sessions over a period of eight years.^[4]

As writer on masonic and other topics

Outside of his academic specialities, Lomas writes on the Neolithic period and archaeoastronomy, ancient mysteries, stone monuments and megaliths, and on astronomical and astrological topics, as well as the history, ritual, and spiritual journey of Freemasonry. He has also written a biography of the electrical pioneer, Nikola Tesla.^[5]

Lomas' main claim to notability is the authorship of several highly speculative works on the origins of Freemasonry. Positive reviewers admit that his works have attracted "a great deal of criticism and even outrage" but argue that his writing is "loaded with all sorts of interesting theories and information that seem emblematic of an insider's point of view on the subject matter".^[6]

Elements of his work have been described as 'hoaxes' by members of the Freemasonry community. For example, the redaction of a document called "The Masonic Testament" by Lomas and co-author Christopher Knight, in their Book of Hiram (2003), from fragments of old manuscripts and ritual,^[7] has been described as "An invention by the highly imaginative authors ... which has no historical validity".^[8] A review from The Square, reprinted on Lomas' website states that Turning the Hiram Key "should be viewed as an invitation to think, rather than a prescriptive statement".^[9]

Whilst writing The Book of Hiram and continuing his research into the cultural origin of scientific ideas, Lomas established an electronic database of Masonic material,^[10] as part of the University of Bradford's Special Collections Library.^[11] Lomas also published an online version of William Preston's Illustrations of Masonry.^[12]

Many Freemasons find Lomas's work worthy of study, as shown by the Grand Lodge of Queensland, Australia requesting Lomas to write a history of Freemasonry for its 'Masonic Training Module'.^[13]

Works

• The Invisible College – revised edition: Corgi (22 May 2009). ISBN 978-0-552-15837-4
• The Secret Science of Masonic Initiation: Lewis Masonic (6 November 2008). ISBN 978-0-85318-318-1
• Turning the Templar Key: The Secret Legacy of the Knights Templar and the Origins of Freemasonry. Fair Winds Press (25 October 2007). ISBN 978-1-59233-279-3
• Turning the Templar Key: The Secret Legacy of the Knights Templar and the Origins of Freemasonry. Lewis Masonic (13 October 2007). ISBN 978-0-85318-286-3
• Turning the Solomon Key: George Washington,the Bright Morning Star and the Secrets of Masonic Astrology. Fair Winds Press (1 September 2006). ISBN 978-1-59233-229-8
• The Secrets of Freemasonry: A Suppressed Tradition Revealed. Constable and Robinson (4 May 2006). ISBN 978-1-84529-312-3
• Turning The Hiram Key: Making Darkness Visible. Lewis Masonic (1 April 2005). ISBN 978-0-85318-239-9
• Freemasonry and the Birth of Modern Science. Fair Winds Press (March 2003). ISBN 978-1-59233-011-9
• The Invisible College: The Royal Society, Freemasonry and the Birth of Modern Science. Headline Book Publishing (7 January 2002). ISBN 978-0-7472-3969-7
• The Man Who Invented The Twentieth Century: Nikola Tesla, Forgotten Genius of Electricity. Headline Book Publishing (January 1999). ISBN 978-0-7472-7588-6

With Geoffrey Lancaster

• Forecasting for Sales and Materials Management. Palgrave Macmillan (29 April 1985). ISBN 978-0-333-36583-0

With Christopher Knight

• The Book Of Hiram: Freemasonry, Venus and the Secret Key to the Life of Jesus. Element Books Ltd. (25 January 2004). ISBN 978-0-00-717468-3
• Uriel's Machine: The Ancient Origins of Science. Century (10 June 1999). ISBN 978-0-7126-8007-3
• The Holy Grail, part of Mysteries Of The Ancient World: The Mysteries of the Ancient World Explored and Explained, June 1998. ISBN 0-297-82433-3
• The Second Messiah: Templars, The Turin Shroud and the Great Secret of Freemasonry, April 1997 ISBN 0-7126-7719-4
• The Hiram Key: Pharaohs, Freemasons and the Discovery of the Secret Scrolls of Jesus. Century, London (1996). ISBN 978-1-931412-75-9

See also

• Rosslyn Chapel
• Lewis Masonic
• Uriel's machine

References

External links

• Robert Lomas' official website
• Knight & Lomas official partnership website
• The Web of Hiram
• Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon Article on The Hiram Key