KING SALOMONS QUARRY ZEDEKIAHS CAVE VINTAGE BOXED LIMESTONE GAVEL SET

Description

KING SALOMONS QUARRY ZEDEKIAHS CAVE VINTAGE BOXED LIMESTONE GAVEL SET
KING SALOMONS QUARRY ZEDEKIAHS CAVE VINTAGE BOXED LIMESTONE GAVEL SET
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Description
VINTAGE SET WITH GENERAL AGING EXPECTED FOR SOMETHING THIS OLD
THERE IS A STAIN ON THE SATIN AS SHOWN IN THE PICTURES
HANDLES ARE NOT PERMANENTLY ATTACHED
An Early set of Limestone Tools in their Olive Wood Box, These were made in the Mid Late 19th Century as Tourist pieces for those brethren visiting King Solomons Quarry   ( Zedekiah`s Cave) Consisting of The Limestone Gavels, The Keystone and The Volume of the Sacred Law.
The Legend is that this is where the Limestone was quarried to build King Solomons
Quarrying is forbidden at this site as it is of immense historical importance.
The set consists of the Two Masonic Gavels, Keystone and Volume of the Sacred Law depicted in the same Limestone from the quarry.
The Common Gavel is one of the working tools of the Entered Apprentice Mason.  It is made use of by the Operative Mason to break off the corners of the rough ashlar, and thus fit it the better for the builder's use, and is therefore adopted as a symbol in Speculative Masonry, to admonish us of the duty of divesting our hearts and consciences of the vices and superfluities of life, thereby fitting our minds as living stones for that spiritual building, that house made not with hands, eternal in the heavens.  It borrows its name from its shape, being that of the gable or gavel end of a house; and this word again comes from the German
gipfel, a summit, top, or peak
-- the idea of a pointed extremity being common to all...   The true form of the gavel is that of the stonemason's hammer.   It is to be made with a cutting edge, that it may be used to break off the corners of rough stones, an operation which could never be effected by the common hammer or mallet.  The gavel thus shaped will give, when looked at in front, the exact representation of the
gavel or gable
end of a house, whence, as has been already said, the name is derived.   The gavel of the Master is also called a
Hiram,
because, like the architect, it governs the Craft and keeps order in the Lodge, as he did in the Temple.
The gavels pictured above are mid 19th Century and was a common souvenir item bought by Masons when traveling to the Holy Land as tourists.  The heads are made from the stone of King Solomon's Quarries and the handles are made of olive wood.
Therefore there is a finite number of these gavel sets in existence, they will never be produced again.You are not just buying a set of limestone gavels, you are buying History.
Rarely seen outside  Masonic Museums.
Zedekiah’s Cave is its Hebrew name, while King Solomon’s quarry is its name in English, and the Cave of the Kings is what it is called by the Arabs. Josephus Flavius, in his book Wars of the Jews (against the Romans), refers to the cave as the "Royal Caverns." The name originated from the “Melekeh" or "Royal" limestone quarried in it. This later led to the cave being called "King Solomon's Quarries."
For over 300 years, Zedekiah’s Cave was the stuff of legend, another story out of Jerusalem. However, one day in the winter of 1854, American missionary James Turner Barclay was walking his dog with his son along the outskirts of the city. Suddenly, the dog, in hot pursuit of a fox, sifted through some dirt alongside the Old City wall and disappeared through an opening in the earth. Barclay called to the animal, whistling to it, but there was no response. His son continued searching at the foot of the rocky cliffs and came upon a deep reservoir created by the flow of water from recent rainfall. Peering inside, he heard barking emanating from the depths of the earth. The next day, Barclay and his son, returned to the site and slipped through the opening only to discover an ancient man-made cave that had been lost by time. Dating back thousands of years, the cave had originally been used as a quarry. Today it is considered one of the most revered sites in Freemasonry.
Zedekiah’s Cave (or Solomon's Quarry) is the largest man-made cave in Israel. There are quite a few underground reservoirs in Jerusalem but this one is much bigger than any other known underground cavity. The entrance is not far from the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem and lies under the Muslim Quarter continuing until the Via Dolorosa in the Christian Quarter just north of the Temple Mount. The mouth of the cave is situated on a rocky cliff that serves as the foundation for the Old City wall.
A Limestone gavel set made from limestone quarried at King Solomons Quarry Jerusalem, the quarry is also known as Zedekiah`s Cave. The shaft`s are made from Jerusalem Olivewood,
It is said that this is the quarry where limestone was extracted for the building of King Solomons Temple.
The Quarry/Cave has particular significance for members of The Holy Royal Arch Degree in Freemasonry.
Masonic Holy Royal Arch ceremonies have been carried out at the site since the middle of the1800s.
These Limestone gavels are very highly prized amongst Freemasons and Collectors alike, now more than ever before, since it is forbidden to excavate from the site. No more limestone will ever be extracted from here again.
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