Bobby J. Demott, 33°
3501 Equestrian Way, Knoxville, Tennessee 37921-1045

Stained-glass windows have enhanced the beauty of the Knoxville, Tennessee, Temple.

Supreme Council, 33°

In late 1990, the Executive Committee of the Scottish Rite Bodies of Knoxville, Tennessee, authorized the placement of decorative memorial stained-glass windows in the existing plain-glass windows of the lobby of the Scottish Rite Temple. Through the generosity of several of the Brethren, the beauty of the Temple has been enhanced by the installation of five 42" x 73" stained-glass windows.

The window depicting an emblem representing the Lodge of Perfection was the gift of Ill. Edgar C. Wilson, 33°, Past Venerable Master, in memory of his wife, Jerry. The window depicting an emblem of the Chapter of Rose Croix was sponsored by Ill. James E. Conner, 33°, then Blount County Membership Chairman, and his wife, Edna. The window depicting an emblem of the Council of Kadosh was the donation of Ill. Lynn D. Smith, 33°, now deceased, and his wife, Ruby. The window with an emblem of the Consistory was presented by Bro. Joe Hal Malone, 32°, K.C.C.H., now deceased, and his wife, Wanda. The window depicting the double-headed eagle emblem of the Supreme Council's Thirty-third Degree was presented by Ill. Alva A. Harmon, 33°, then Director of Work, and his wife, Betty.

The artist of all the windows, Miss Jo Marie Brotherton, has had an interest in art since her elementary school days and is a 1980 graduate in Art Education from the University of Tennessee. Her first assignment with the Knoxville Glass Company was the restoration of the windows in an old railroad station. She has been involved with projects in many churches, homes, stores, and other commercial buildings.

Lodge of Perfection	Rose Croix

The artist, under the tutelage of Ill. Alva A. Harmon, 33°, searched the library for details of the design and the significance of the meanings of the symbols as well as the objectives of the Degrees in the four Bodies and the Thirty-third Degree. The artist concluded that Scottish Rite Masonry was masculine, regal, benevolent, and dedicated to the teaching of high ideals. Thus she used bold strong colors to signify the gender, blue to denote royalty, and white to indicate benevolence and purity. The blue glass came from Poland, the gold border glass from West Germany, and other colors from domestic sources, primarily Spokane, Washington.

Council of Kadosh	Consistory

The white letters were created by sandblasting colored glass, as in the XXXII of the Consistory window, the central letters on the Lodge of Perfection symbol, and the thirty-three stars on the 33° symbol. The brown designs in the corners on all the windows are replicates and are painted, as are the eagles and pelican. The paint is a formulation which blends into glass and is fixed by firing the glass at 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Each window has 24 small panels, about 6" x 9" in size, which are fastened together with lead. If, a panel is broken, it can be replaced without replacing the entire window. For each window, a shielding glass on the outside of the building offers protection against physical damage. The symbols are round, but the space of the window is oblong, thus vertical pieces were placed to balance the composition. There are 24 jewels in each window. A jewel is made using a thicker piece of glass and giving it multiple facets. These decorated windows add materially to the beauty of the lobby and are a source of pride among the members. Sincere thanks go to each Brother contributing to this project and to Ill. Alva A. Harmon for guiding this project to conclusion and making the lobby appear much more attractive.

Bobby J. Demott is a member of Cherokee Lodge No. 728, Knoxville, Tennessee, and a 33° member of the Knoxville S.R. Bodies. Now retired, he spent over 33 years on the faculty of the University of Tennessee where he taught and conducted research on dairy products. He is a frequent contributor to the Scottish Rite Journal.