[Ads-l] Possible Antedatings of "Freemason"

[Shapiro, Fred]

An erudite article at the following website suggests uses of the word "freemason" earlier than the OED's first use.

Fred Shapiro


http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/prescott02.html
[http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/_sc64.gif]<http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/prescott02.html>
The Earliest Use of the Word ‘Freemason’<http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/prescott02.html>
It has hitherto been thought that the earliest appearance of the English word ‘freemason’ was in 1376. At the symposium organised by Lodge Hope of Kurrachee No. 337 at Kirkcaldy in May 2003, Professor Andrew Prescott, Director of the Centre for Research into Freemasonry, University of Sheffield, drew attention to some earlier records of the word.
www.freemasons-freemasonry.com


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