Mark Masonry is and has been an appendant Order of freemasonry. Our history is steeped in tradition and our Order traces its origin to the myths and legends of the three Great Abrahamic Faiths of the Ancient Middle East. A central message of Mark Masonry is that initial setbacks and disappointments ought not to stand in the way of pursuit of perfection and desire for betterment. This message is the theme of the Hiramic legend that underpins our ceremonies, where a stone, once rejected by the builders, becomes the headstone of the building.
The Mark degree has been worked within Lodges and Chapters in England since about 1723. In fact, the United Grand Lodge of England recognised the Mark degree at its Quarterly Communication in March 1856, as a “graceful appendage” to the Fellow Crafts degree. However, a sudden reversal took place at the next meeting and the purport of the minutes of the earlier meeting went unfulfilled.
The matter did not, however, end there. The records of Bon Accord Lodge (T.I.) confirm that within 14 days or so of the about-turn, the brethren of Bon Accord (which was founded on 17 September 1851) met and resolved that a Grand Mark Masters Lodge for England and its Dependencies be forthwith established. Soon, the Grand Lodge of Mark Masters was established on 23 June 1856 and Lord Leigh, who was then the WM of Bon Accord Lodge, was elected the Grand Master.
In our part of the world, the first Mark Lodge, the Gottlieb Mark Lodge No. 382 EC, was founded in 1887. The second Mark Lodge – the first in Singapore – Edaljee Khory No. 436 EC was consecrated on 7 August 1891. With the establishment of two further Mark Lodges in Malaya, Batu Bertanda Mark Lodge No. 609 EC in Selangor on 31 March 1910 and the Perak Mark Lodge No. 663 EC in Ipoh in November 1916, the first Mark District of Malaya came into being.
Since 1917, there has been a succession of District Grand Mark Masters, altogether 12 thus far; and they are:
| F.M. Elliot | 1917/1919 |
| T.O. Mayhew | 1924/1933 |
| Sir George Trimmer | 1933/1938 |
| B. Lowick | 1938/1954 |
| E.G. Holiday | 1954/1965 |
| L. Rayner | 1965/1966 |
| I.G. Hardinge | 1967/1975 |
| A.J. Wilton | 1975/1977 |
| J.W.Y.Eu | 1977/1997 |
| R.I. Rawlings | 1998/2003 |
| Cheah Kok Cheong | 2003/2012 |
| MPH Rubin | since 2012 |
In December 1967, the ‘District of Mark Master Masons of Malaya’ was re-named the ‘District of Mark Master Masons of South-East Asia’.
In the year 2012, the Mark Lodges in Malaysia, having decided to form a separate Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons and with the Mark Lodges in Singapore overwhelmingly resolving to remain under the jurisdiction and purview of the Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of England and Wales, there was an inevitable parting of company.
The result was the formation of a new Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons in Malaysia and the consequential re-constituting of the existing District Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of South-East Asia as the District Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Singapore on 12 August 2012.
A communication issuing from the Mark Grand Lodge, under the authority of The MW Grand Master, His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, confirmed that the re-constituted District Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Singapore shall be the successor of the former District Grand Lodge of the Mark Master Masons of South-East Asia and with its status as a keystone district preserved.
The District Grand Lodge of Mark Master Masons of Singapore has now under its jurisdiction four lodges: three Mark Lodges in Edaljee Khory 436 EC, founded in 1891, Malaysia Mark Lodge 1286 EC, founded on 18 April 1964; Perseverance Lodge, founded on 12 August 2012; and one Royal Ark Mariner Lodge, Mayhew Lodge of Royal Ark Mariners 436 EC, founded on 24 May 1928. As is the rule that every Royal Ark Mariner Lodge should be attached to a Mark Lodge, the Mayhew Royal Ark Mariner Lodge is anchored to the Edaljee Khory Lodge of Mark Master Masons.
The underlying principle of the Royal Ark Mariner Degree is based on the story of the ancient Patriarch Noah, the great flood that devastated the world during his era and the Ark of Haven which Noah built at God’s command to preserve his family and two and two of all flesh, wherein was breath of life.
The Order of Mark Masonry is founded on the principles of piety, virtue, brotherly love, universal charity and harmony. Above all, it warrants its members scrupulously to uphold the laws of the land and maintain steadfastly the integrity and good repute of the Order.